Worth the Wait
by daisyscrapper
Summary: As Jennifer's friendship with Evan begins to transform into something more, she begins to find love letters from an admirer. The letters turn ugly when the admirer becomes desperate to get to Jennifer. Keller/Lorne pre-ship pairing
1. Chapter 1

_Well, here I go with another Jennifer/Evan story. I never would have thought of the pairing, but several stories here sparked my interest! Thanks for visiting and reading. I hope you enjoy it! I appreciate any reviews- they are encouraging._

_Timeline for the story: Season 5, although I can't promise I have everything correct. I tried my best and any errors are mine.  
_

_Thank you to __bailey1ak for all of the help and proofreading! I can't thank you enough! _

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* * *

  
_

Most would be slightly appalled at the disorganization of Colonel John Sheppard's desk. Quite frankly, many would even wonder if some sort of confrontation happened in the office, leading to the mess. Stacks of files littered the colonel's work area. Memos and mission reports filled the wire basket on the other end of the desk. Although the basket served as an organizational tool, Sheppard's method to filling the basket was less than neat. Papers lay there, in every direction, failing to conform to the trappings of the rectangular shape.

The new security protocol binders had arrived with the last shipment of the _Daedalus._ Both Sheppard and Lorne had spent many hours on the binders. It served as a way of formally instructing both permanent and temporary residents on Atlantis about rules, procedures, maps of the city, and a directory listing of the personnel they had to update every few months. _  
_

The pile on Sheppard's desk had reached such a height that Major Evan Lorne was surprised to hear a voice from behind the stacks. Hearing the muttering, Sheppard's second-in-command walked closer to see the colonel under the desk complaining about the IOA and their useless paperwork requirements.

"Sir, you radioed me?" Evan said, standing at a relaxed attention stance.

Hitting his head, Sheppard swore. "Seriously, Lorne, how about we take that formality down a notch. Considering that you're witnessing not one of my greatest moments right now."

Lorne tried to hide a smile. Even when they were on duty, Sheppard insisted on a more informal relationship between his second-in-command and himself. Lorne didn't struggle with it off duty as much as he did when they were in a work setting.

"Sorry, Sheppard," Lorne said. Spying a few papers in front of the desk on the floor, he bent to pick them up. Since Sheppard insisted on informality, Evan decided to push his luck. "Lose a few things? Pretty soon Woolsey's going to condemn this office."

"Shut it, Lorne. I don't want to hear about it. If Woolsey didn't insist on me attending every stinking meeting in this city, I may have a clear desk."

Rummaging through the papers, Sheppard found what he was looking for. "I need your signature on these requests I'm sending back with the _Daedalus._"

Evan looked over the forms, recognizing them as forms both him and Sheppard filled out last week. "Do you think this time they'll grant our requests?"

Sheppard let out a frustrated breath. "They better, that's for sure. Getting four more botanists that we didn't need and two brainless Marines who keep hitting on Keller's nurses and Keller herself during their physicals is about the last straw in my book. I specifically requested two additional doctors, one needing to be a competent surgeon, and another scientist in the lab that won't quit every time Rodney goes on a rampage." Taking the forms back, Sheppard stood up. "This time, I'm talking these directly to Woolsey. Maybe he can get something done."

Stepping aside, Lorne waited for Sheppard to close his office door.

"Walk with me, Lorne. I haven't eaten and need to go over a few more things for this month with you," Sheppard said over his shoulder. "As much as I hate meetings, we need to start having a monthly one. Starting today. But no offices, we meet over dinner, over in the corner."

Lorne kept up pace easily with Atlantis' chief military officer. "Sounds like a plan. And it will be even better if pie is on the menu tonight. I'd give a month's wage just for some apple pie."

Sheppard turned to him, sharing the fantasy. "And ice cream. Seriously, apple pie has to be served with ice cream. Now that's a request we need to put in next time."

They two men arrived in short time to the mess hall. Dinner was served until 8 p.m. due to many missions and post-mission debriefings extending after the normal times most ate their evening meals.

They filled their trays and glanced around for a private table. Sheppard was the first to spot Dr. Jennifer Keller sitting with one of the new idiot marines that came back on the _Daedalus. _The younger recruit was tall, but very thin. Judging from the first impressions he had of him, the man had the metabolism of four people. He was constantly moving, whether he was gesturing with his hands while talking, pacing before a training, or running around the city before his night shift began.

While keeping an obviously fake smile on her face, she darted her eyes to Sheppard, pleading for him to sit with them. John shook his head, mouthing "meeting" to her and nodding his head towards Lorne. Her eyes widened, threateningly, making him wince.

He sighed. "Lorne, mind if we postpone our meeting until after dinner?"

"I would've suggested it if you hadn't," Lorne replied. "Jen has ways of getting back at you when she's ticked off about something. You don't mess with the woman who can choose your needles, let alone stick you with the nurse with bad breath and cold hands.

Sheppard snickered. "All right, let's go rescue the damsel in distress." They began walking toward her.

"Hey, Dr. Keller," John said loudly, interrupting what sounded like the Marine's extended version of his greatest moments as a soldier. He purposely sat down next to her. "Mind if we join you?" Evan sat next to the man, who was clearly flustered that both the chief military officer as well as his second-in-command were sitting with him at dinner. He jumped up, saluting them both.

"At ease, Adams," Sheppard said, waving his fork at him. He looked at Jennifer before digging into the food. "So how's the infirmary holding up tonight? It's rare to see you dining with us."

Jennifer sent them both a grateful look. "Slow, actually," she responded. "I decided to rediscover what hot food tastes like. It's been awhile since I've made it to dinner this week."

Hungry, Sheppard nodded while cutting into his chicken marsala. The cooks did the best they could with what was provided and their limited ways of both storing and preparing the meals. John didn't miss many things on Earth, but one thing was for certain. He missed the snobby place his father used to take him out to eat at growing up. The waiters were rude but the food was incredible.

Returning back to the conversation, he motioned to Lorne. "We were just going over the new request I'll have Woolsey personally send back to Earth this time. In bold, and highlighted neon yellow, is our second request for two additional doctors. If it doesn't go through this time, I'll personally gate back and force Dr. Lam back with us from the SGC."

Adams suddenly grinned. "Man, Stargate command sure does pick them right."

The other three stopped eating and sent him a questioning glance.

"Uh," he stuttered. "It's just that Dr. Lam and Dr. Keller are both two of the nicest looking female doctors I've seen."

Sheppard frowned at him. "What you meant to say is that the SGC knows how to pick the brightest and most knowledgeable doctors you've ever seen."

"Yes, sir," Adams said, finishing up his food. "That's what I meant."

Lorne snorted into his food, making Jennifer cough. "Well, I better take advantage of this lull we have going in the infirmary and get a good run in tonight." She stood, taking her tray with her. "Gentlemen, I'll see you tomorrow."

The men watched her leave. Lorne made short work of setting Adams straight.

"Lieutenant, I'll let you in on a well known fact around Atlantis," he began, picking up his roll and buttering it. "But before that, let's make this clear. Think before you speak, especially if you're about to say something about a woman on this base. Commenting on a woman's physical appearance, especially in front of that particular woman as well as in the presence of two of your commanding officers, is not the wisest choice you could make your second week on Atlantis."

The man nodded, wide-eyed, obviously regretting his words earlier.

"Secondly," Evan continued, deliberately taking a bite and chewing slowly. "Dr. Keller has made it known that she prefers not to date. Her reasons are her own." Finishing, he moved on to the second half of his roll. "Now, it's perfectly fine if you want to attempt a friendship with her. Sheppard and I consider her to be a good friend. But just to clear the air, I wouldn't expect anything more to come of it."

"Sirs, I apologize," Adams said, clearing his tray. "If I'm dismissed, I would be more than happy to go apologize to Dr. Keller."

"Not necessary, Lieutenant," Sheppard said. "No harm done. Quite frankly, Doc is probably used to it. But in the future, I would back off of her."

He nodded. "Yes, sir. Thank you, sirs."

They both waited until the man hastily retreated out of the mess hall. Laughing, they finished eating.

"No apple pie for you Lorne," Sheppard said, eating half of his Jello. "When we get a leave to go back to Earth, the first stop I make is to a bakery. I'm going to get one of everything. And the best thing is that no Jello will be in sight. Anyways," he said, pushing away his cup. "We're going to have to do some redistribution on some of our teams. We have three guys injured, one on leave back to Earth for a wedding, and these two new Marines to add into the mix."

Lorne nodded. "In my opinion, I'd add the two new guys in with each of us until we at least know how they can handle things. Any red flags on their records?"

Sheppard shook his head. "Nothing out of the ordinary in either way— good or bad." He nodded. "I agree. You can take Adams, I'll take Sanchez with my team. Teyla and Ronon can handle him, especially since I've been hearing he's a little overconfident. Aside from that, let's sideline SGA-7 and add two of our seasoned guys who have been stuck in the city doing rounds on the teams needing numbers."

"Sounds good," Lorne said.

"And then there's our little reoccurring problem with have with Jen going off world," Sheppard half laughed. "The poor Doc keeps running into problems."

"I've been thinking about the same thing. How about we make it mandatory that two teams go through with her every time? And one must be one of our own."

Sheppard nodded. He knew full well it wouldn't sit well with Jennifer that she required this much extra precaution. "And I'll up that even more. We'll assign one man to specifically guard her the entire time. She doesn't get left alone for any reason."

Lorne agreed.

Settling a few more problems, Sheppard leaned back. "See, these meetings are much more pleasant over a meal. And not in the confines of a small room with no windows. We need to get Woolsey in on this."

Agreeing, Lorne picked up his tray. "I'm late. I promised Ronon I'd go a few rounds with him later tonight."

"When did this start?" Sheppard said, surprised his SIC, although more than capable of handling himself in a fight, would want to subject himself to Ronon. Only Teyla and Sheppard had taken on the Satedan willingly outside of regular training sessions. Others were just unlucky if they found themselves sparring with him during their trainings. Sheppard knew for a fact Ronon went full out after hours.

"Tonight," Lorne replied. "I wanted to kick my training up a notch and told Ronon not to go easy on me. It will help on off-world missions the next time we get into it with the Wraith, I figure."

"Nice, Lorne," Sheppard said, impressed with his second-in-command. "Glad to hear you've joined the ranks of Teyla and I. From personal experience, I recommend lots of ice and keeping on good terms with Jennifer. You're going to be visiting the infirmary a whole lot more."

Grimly, Lorne waved. "Figured so. Night, Sheppard."

Sheppard waved, picking up his own tray and heading for a walk around the city.

* * *

Evan entered the training room, glad to see Ronon was running late as well. He'd made a quick stop at his room to change into work out gear, which to him consisted of black running pants and a white t-shirt. Making it a point to warm up well, he stretched out to avoid some of the soreness he knew would be coming tomorrow morning.

Ronon walked through the door several minutes later.

"Sorry, Lorne," he grunted. "Ran into the Doc on the way here."

"I thought she was going on a run?" Evan said. "She just left the mess hall about thirty minutes ago."

Stretching himself, Ronon pulled his knee to his chest while lying down on the ground. "Something was up. She was acting kind of weird. I tried to get her to talk more, but she ran off on me. Anything strange happen during dinner?"

Evan thought back to Adams and his off hand comment. "Well, when we got there, she was eating with the new guy... Lt. Adams. But she left looking okay."

Ronon stood up, moving toward Lorne in the center of the room. "Well, maybe she'll talk about it tomorrow." He grinned. "Ready to get killed?"

Sending a look back a Ronon, he sighed. "I think I'm going to regret asking you for extra training." Hands in a defensive position, he circled around the mat before Ronon took his first shot.

* * *

It was inevitable. Despite Ronon's assurance that Evan held his own for most of the time, stating he was impressed with him, Evan was still bleeding an hour after starting their session. Ronon escorted him to the infirmary, where Dr. Henry Stevens was on shift.

A nurse sat Evan down, purposely lingering until Dr. Stevens was available to come over. It was plainly obvious the woman was interested in Evan. She cleaned his wound, dropping hints that Evan needed a day off and should try and attend a few of the social events planned during the month.

Ronon watched, smiling at Evan's reaction. Glaring back at his friend, Evan just mumbled a few answers, hoping Dr. Stevens was on his way. Thankfully, the doctor appeared, leaving the nurse nothing else to do but retreat back to her paperwork.

"Ronon," the doctor nodded to the big man. "Major Lorne. We don't see as much of you in here as Colonel Sheppard and Mr. Dex over here. What happened tonight?"

Chuckling, Ronon glanced at Evan. "Doctor, you'll be seeing a whole lot more of him in the next few weeks. Tuesday and Friday nights, especially. We're training together."

The doctor looked back at Evan, sending him a look that clearly questioned if he was insane. "Ah. Well, major. Either you're overly ambitious or have a thing for one of our nurses..."

Evan immediately shook his head. "None of the above, Doc," he said, wincing as the man began to pull over a tray to stitch him up. "Just want to push myself to learn more."

The doctor began to stitch him. "Well, a few nurses in here will be glad to see your face in here more often."

Rolling his eyes at Ronon, Evan began to focus on the instruments on the tray. He agreed with Jennifer in this area. Dating on Atlantis only would lead to problems. Besides the fact that he kept himself busy and took his job seriously, he didn't see it worth the risk to begin a relationship. It always carried the risk of failing; and failing in the city meant you would be doomed to face that person on a daily basis. It was the same on Earth. If someone began a relationship within the same work environment and later ended it, you would inevitably see that person day to day. Only on Atlantis, it would be worse. Day to night and repeat for months upon end.

It wasn't that a few women hadn't tempted him. But instead, he'd been able to push those feelings aside. Friendships with the women had its benefits as well, without the damaging end results.

Before he knew it, Dr. Stevens had finished up and instructed him to take it easy with training for a few days. Evan sat up and both men made their way to the mess hall, hoping for a late night snack.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jennifer sat in her room, holding the letter she'd received just an hour ago. The run hadn't cleared her mind. And the letter in her hand was the source of that problem. Frustrated, she cursed the piece of paper for disturbing her first night off in over a week.

Many women may be flattered to receive such a letter. But Jennifer just found herself confused. Her brain tried to figure out who on base could've left her the note that greeted her on the floor when she returned back from dinner to change for her run. It wasn't as if she flirted. Far from it. Her reputation of refusing to date was common knowledge. And if it wasn't, Sheppard let it slip freely with the new recruits on base.

So why this letter?

Unfolding it, she read it again.

_Dear Jennifer,_

_I couldn't help watching you today. The way you moved, each movement perfectly planned and purposeful.  
It brings me joy to be close to you. For now, I'll watch from afar. But soon I hope to be with you- to hold you.  
Until then, I'll be content watching you from a distance._

_Love,  
A friend_

She refolded the note, knowing it was silly to keep it. But something disturbed her about it, urging her to hold on to it. Moving to her dresser, she tucked it inside and tried to push it from her mind. _  
_


	2. Chapter 2

Evan stood, ready to get this mission underway. Marines began to fill the gate room. Two groups were going off-world today, directly because of their decision to make sure Jennifer had more than adequate protection.

He grinned when he saw her wobble into the room. As usual, she'd over packed. And it wasn't like it was full of clothes or items a normal woman would fill in their bulging duffel bags. If he was to peak inside, he'd see a variety of medical instruments, medicines, a few medical books, as well as a stash of lollipops for any children she may treat during their visit.

In an effort to become allies with a few neighboring villages on the planet, they agreed to hold a clinic each day for the sick and elderly. In return, Atlantis was able to gain friends as well as allies against the Wraith. In addition to those great benefits, the planet had a few scans show something buried deep inside several caves that may have housed former Wraith laboratories. McKay was practically salivating over the prospect of getting access to those down the road.

Evan walked over to her, grabbing one of her bags despite her protests.

"Major, you know my rule," she said, trying to grab it back. "I bring it, I carry it."

He shook his head. "Sorry, blame my upbringing. I'm not going to watch you teeter off balance and roll down a hill. Besides, think of your running bad luck you've had lately going through the gate."

She sniffed. "It's not that bad." Turning back to him, she looked at him again. "It is, isn't it? Oh, all right. Carry the bag. My luck would have it that I'd roll down a hill, get captured by a rogue alien, trigger a Wraith alarm, and bring down the entire planet."

The corners of his mouth twitched. "You forgot sending the climate into confusion and causing an earthquake. And hail. Lots of hail."

Swatting him even though his team had surrounded him, she couldn't help laughing. Typically she tried to maintain professionalism with Evan, John, and Ronon while they were on duty, sticking with calling them by their ranks or last names. But sometimes she couldn't help herself. While the brotherly relationship she had with the three of them had its benefits, the teasing could get a little out of control.

"All right, teams, one minute until we depart. Lorne, you and your team set up the clinic and camp in the first village. Ronon, myself, Rodney, Sanchez, and Teyla will go ahead to the next village... try to open negotiations on that lab McKay is drooling over. Doc, you're with Lorne's team, of course." Sheppard sent a silent message to Evan. Nodding, Lorne moved by her side. During the mission, he was to stick to Jennifer's side at all times.

Once on the other side of the gate, the teams split up. Evan hoped his decision to bring Lieutenant Adams along this early in his training on Atlantis panned out. His two other men, both Air Force captains, both had his respect. Although at times they could act a little on the crazy side, the men knew when to be serious. Even now, as Evan and Jennifer trailed behind them, he could hear Anderson singing a Jimi Hendrix song softly to himself. Jennifer grinned when she saw Miller tapping on his vest and gun to the beat of his friend's singing. Adams, however, looked like he was about to snap his neck at any second; he obviously was set on making up for the first impression he made to Evan at dinner a few nights ago. The man was so intent on looking for anything suspicious that he accidentally tripped on a tree root, making Jennifer send an amused look at Evan.

"It's been awhile since I've been assigned to your team, major," she said.

"Now that you mention it, we've been having a string of good luck in the last few months," he turned, amused at the easy comeback that rolled off his tongue. Getting smacked for the second time, he yanked on her pony tail and tried to focus himself on the surroundings.

Miles of forest flanked each side of the dirt path as they made their way up the trail. It was his team's second time returning to this planet. The landscape had become familiar, especially the mountainous region to their three position. He tried to cement the image into his brain, hoping to soon get back to his hobby of painting. It had been months since he last picked up a brush. Evan had a small area set in the corner of his room. Since he began his assignment on Atlantis, he'd only painted one watercolor- a stunning sunset shining over the tall towers of the city.

"It's gorgeous here," Jennifer said, pointing to the rows of wildflowers on the bank of the hill they were passing.

Evan nodded. "Maybe Sheppard will give me a day off and I can come here. I'd love to just spend the day painting those mountains."

She looked back at him. "That's one thing I don't have... a hobby. Seriously, Ev," she confided. "I have no life outside those infirmary doors."

He grinned. "Sure you do. You like to run."

"Running is a way to keep in shape so I'm not panting while trying to keep up with you and your men on missions," she retorted.

"Well," he said, scanning the area as they arrived at the village. "How about reading a book?" Evan waved at a few villagers he remembered from last time. They headed to the medical office in a small dwelling towards the middle of the town.

"Hmmmm..." she said, smiling at a few children. "That would be nice. An afternoon of reading. Maybe someone can lend me one and I'll come back with you."

Evan entered the building, followed by Jennifer. Not trusting the man to scare off one of the villagers with that panicked look on his face, Evan called in Adams as well inside the house. Anderson walked in after them, making sure everything was secure, and then walked out to stand watch with Miller.

The two men stood while leaning slightly on the housing structure. Miller bent to pick up a stray ball one of the boys had accidentally kicked their way. Tossing it back, he waved at the kid.

"Lorne's sticking close to the doc," Anderson murmured, careful not to speak too loud. "Wonder what's that about?"

Miller shrugged. "It's pretty obvious. The doc's great and all, but her luck pretty much sucks. He's probably trying to get her in and out of here without an incident."

Anderson agreed, then grinned. "Maybe he's got a thing for her."

Snorting, Miller leaned back and rested his head. The sun was out finally, elevating the temperature since they had first arrived from the gate. "Everyone says they're just friends. But if you ask me, they'd be good together." He grinned. "Don't tell me you haven't seen them get a little flirt on."

"Please," Anderson looked at him. "Who wouldn't? The doc's got that 'girl next store' pretty look. If she smiled at me the way she does at Lorne, I wouldn't even hesitate to follow up. Not even a heartbeat."

"Well, it's better off that she doesn't look like that at you," Miller said. "When I see her hanging around Sheppard and Ronon, those guys both treat her like their kid sister. Could you imagine them after you if things didn't work out?" He shuddered. "No, sir. Not worth the hassle. I'll stick to being friendly towards her and making sure she gets back to Atlantis in one piece."

"Wonder if Adams knows the lay of the land yet?" Anderson grinned. "Now that would be interesting to watch."

* * *

Jennifer made short work of setting up a sufficient area to tend to her patients for the day. Adams was quick to volunteer to help her in any way. Smiling at him, she instructed him to get help from a few other men with moving a table over toward her. Evan brought her medical supplies closer, rolling his eyes at her as he saw Adams scurry back for more orders.

Evan walked over to speak with the village healer, helping him to organize the patients by their needs and the severity of their ailments.

Opening her bag, she glanced in and frowned at an envelope that had not been there hours earlier when she checked her bag. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Evan in the middle of the crowd giving orders and Adams trying his best to help his commanding officer.

Not able to wait, she opened the letter.

_Jennifer,_

_You are always on my mind._  
_I watch you talk with other men on base. It makes me angry that they are able to talk so freely to you__._

_Last night, I was so close that I could have reached out and touched you. But it's too soon. It won't be long, I promise,_  
_until we can meet face to face._

_Love,_

_A friend_

_Okay, _she thought, _definitely creepier. _The man sounded like he hadn't even met her yet. Seeing Evan walking over to her, she refolded the note and stuck it in her pocket.

"Hey, ready to start?" he called over to her. Embarrassed, she turned and quickly got her stuff together.

She worked through the line of patients, carefully attending to each of them. Only two children were in line. One had a lingering cough, due to a recent bout of some sort of bronchial infection, and the other had fallen from a tree and sprained his wrist. She took her time with each of them, handing them a lollipop as she worked and then another when she finished, telling them it was for later.

Despite her attentiveness to the people, her thoughts lingered on the note. Jennifer wondered how it had gotten into her medical bags. Shaking her head, she tried to refocus on the task before her. Looking at the line, it had grown since she first arrived. Glancing a look at Evan, he too was concerned they wouldn't finish before they planned on setting up camp for the night. Quickening her pace, she worked through a late lunch, munching on a protein bar Evan handed her at some point and washing it down with a bottle of water. By the time they were done, all patients had been seen and treated and no one had to be turned away.

The healer was grateful for Jennifer's help. He handed her a wrapped package, telling her it was a collection of herbs and medicines their people had found useful in the past few centuries. He tucked in a piece of parchment, detailing what each treated and what to use it for. Profoundly surprised at his offerings, Jennifer shook his hand and beamed back at Evan.

"I can't wait to get back to Atlantis to look at all of this," she said, thankful that Adams had already packed her stuff and grabbed the bag she planned on carrying. Jennifer was so exhausted that she didn't even protest over the kind act. Evan took the other, leading Jennifer out of the dwelling.

Anderson and Miller were both standing where they left them. Nodding at Evan, they turned and led the way to the camp Miller had set up at the edge of town by himself after lunch.

"How'd it go today, Doc?" Miller said, falling in step beside her.

Smiling, she glanced over at him. "A little hectic, but we finished in time. Nothing too serious came our way."

Anderson looked at Evan. "Major, we may finish this day out without anything catastrophic to put in your mission report."

"We may have to make something up, captain," Evan said, moving a safe distance from Jennifer. "No one will believe it. Especially with our little good luck charm over here."

Too tired to move toward him, Jennifer slapped Anderson's arm.

"Hey, girl," he laughed, rubbing his arm. "He said it!"

She glared at him halfheartedly. "You started it. And you can both share it. My brain and ability to move has just about shut down for the day."

While the two men were kidding with Jen, Miller and Adams walked ahead and set down their duffels. Miller volunteered to hand out the rations while Adams helped Evan and Jennifer safely store away her medical equipment next to the tents.

Evan began giving orders to the men as they ate. Jennifer finished hers quickly, then laid down, claiming to need to stretch her back out. "Alright, the three of us will rotate shifts. Two on duty at all times. One sleeps in a tent, Dr. Keller gets the other one." Nodding at the two tents set up. "Let's see how long we can hold up this uneventful mission." Glancing over, he half expected a retort from Jennifer. Instead, he was greeted to the sight of Jennifer curled up in a ball, sleeping on the ground with her jacket as a pillow. "I'll grab sleeping beauty over there and settle her in the tent."

"Did she eat enough?" Miller asked, concerned for the doctor.

Evan nodded. "As much as she usually does, which isn't a lot. But it'll hold her for the night. Give me a protein bar and I'll set it next to her in the tent in case she wakes hungry. And a flashlight."

Miller dug for the items and tossed them to Evan. He stuck them in his pocket and scooped her up in his arms. Not even stirring, she sighed and loosely wrapped her arms around Evan. He stood there for a moment and just looked at her, smiling at her ability to just drop into sleep that easily.

Anderson sent Miller a pointed look. Eyes glued to the major, they watched the man carefully set Jennifer into the tent and then cover her with a blanket. Grinning at each other, Adams looked at them, confused.

"Don't worry, Adams," Miller laughed. "You'll catch on eventually."

* * *

In the morning, they set out to meet with Sheppard's team in the next village. The plan was to repeat what happened the day before. Evan was pleased to find it went just as smoothly. They spent another night at a second camp the men set up and then made their way back to the gate in the morning.

Miller and Anderson were getting a kick out of watching Adam's kiss up to both Lorne and Sheppard. Jennifer noticed and fell in line with them both.

"Be nice to the new guy," she whispered, laughing a little herself. Currently, he was carrying an extra bag for her and eying the treeline, even making Ronon roll his eyes.

"Yeah, Dr. Keller is right," Miller joked. "This mission has gone too smoothly. The major swears there's going to be a hail storm at least."

Glaring at Evan over Anderson's shoulder, she stuck her tongue out at him.

"What? What did I do?" He asked innocently, even though he'd overheard the conversation.

Taking pity on his CO, Miller distracted Jennifer. "So, Keller, you planning on going to the big Game Show night next week?"

She groaned. Remembering hearing about it weeks ago, Jennifer tried to come up with an excuse. "No, not planning on it."

"Too late," Sheppard called over to her. "All department heads are required. It's part of our new team building initiative, thanks to a few complaints that we've been all about work and no play lately."

Scowling, she tried to think of an excuse. "Maybe I'll trip and sprain something."

Anderson looked at her, smiling. "Between an infirmary with several sets of crutches and the prospect of Lorne carrying you again, I think that excuse won't hold, Doc."

She reddened. Jennifer vaguely remembered being carried the night before after falling to sleep out of sheer exhaustion. The comforting feeling of being held so close jarred her memory. Judging from the faint scent of his aftershave, she knew it had been Evan. Friend or not, the man smelled incredible.

"Come on, Keller," Sheppard nagged. "It's only a few hours. And it'll be fun. I heard the social committee is rounding up some prizes."

"And you don't even have to bring a date," Miller said. "Not like you would have a hard time finding one. Just saying in case you don't want to bring one."

She heard Anderson mutter under his breath. "I know someone who would jump at the chance." Miller butted him with his gun.

Out of no where, Adams leaped in front of the group. "Up there! On our two!" There was a flurry of activity as everyone faced in the direction Adams was pointing, except for Anderson, who quickly moved to watch from behind in case they were surrounded. Lorne shoved Miller aside and leaped in front of Jennifer, ordering her to stay behind him. Sheppard's team flanked the sides, also moving closer to guard Jennifer.

A man was standing on top of the cliff, waving at them. No one could make out any words.

"Lorne," Sheppard called out. "Any clue?"

"No, sir," he responded, staying on alert.

They watched as the man waved frantically at them and then began descending the hill.

"Everyone keep alert, but don't shoot. I don't think he's armed," Sheppard ordered.

Evan began to recognize the man from the first village. He was carrying a package. Judging from the way he was carrying it, the item did not weigh much. Keeping his eyes trained on the man, he didn't budge from covering Jennifer.

"Wait! Wait!" he called to the group. Seeing the guns trained on him, he raised up one hand and waved the package. "My sister wanted to give something to the doctor. It's a thank you gift for treating my nephew."

Sheppard and Teyla walked over and had the man open the package. Ronon went behind the man and patted him down. Once they were assured he was no threat to the doctor, Sheppard nodded at Evan. Not leaving her side, Evan stayed next to her as she walked over to the man.

The villager looked a little taken back by the extra precautions. Sheppard picked up on the man's thinking and shrugged.

"Sorry about all of that," he tried to smooth things over. "We're overprotective of our doctor. There have been incidents where rogue residents of planets we've visited have attempted to kidnap our doctors to keep them as their own."

The man nodded. "I understand. I am Sully." He turned to Jennifer. "We met yesterday, Dr. Keller."

Jennifer smiled. "Of course. I remember you and your sister. How's your nephew holding up today?"

"Much better, thanks to your medicine. My sister—she was so grateful that she stayed up all night making this for you." He handed her the shawl. Jennifer admired the handiwork, clearly seeing that the woman had a great amount of talent. The colors were gorgeous, ranging from deep blues to a warm violet color. Clutching it, she smiled.

"She didn't have to go to this trouble," Jennifer said. "And she has three children to look after today with no sleep."

Sully laughed. "There was no stopping her. Besides, her husband will let her sleep while he catches up on work around the house today. He's a good man."

"Well, tell her I'm touched she would give this to me," Jennifer said, touching his arm. "I'll treasure it."

He backed up to go. Looking at Lorne, he shook his hand. "Thank you, major, for allowing her to come here. And there's no hard feelings about your protectiveness."

Evan cocked his head sideways, confused by the man singling him out. Sully raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, I thought she was your wife. You didn't leave her side all day yesterday."

Anderson and Miller turned to cover their laughs with a cough. Sheppard didn't attempt to hide the laugh.

"Ah, no. She's a friend. To all of us," Evan said, placing an arm on Jennifer's back.

"Well," Sully said with a wink at Jennifer. "If I would have known that, maybe I would have asked you to dinner."

Adams just looked at the man, surprising the Atlantians that he would speak up. "Trust me, bad idea." Looking pointedly at Ronon, whose gun was still trained on the man, and then to Sheppard and Evan.

Sully laughed. "I see. Well, take care of her, my friends. We look forward to having you again as guests in our village."

Turning as he left, the group made their way to the gate. Sheppard patted Adams on the back.

"Nice job back there, Adams. Even though he turned out to be friendly, you spotted him even before Ronon."

Ronon grunted. "Would have been me if the rest of you were quiet," he mumbled grumpily.

Evan nodded at Adams. "Nice work."

Miller and Anderson each gave the new team member a fist bump.

"So," Jennifer said, murmuring under her breath. "Is he forgiven for previous mishaps?"

Evan looked down at her. "I'll never forget a quote I read during training. 'It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it.'"

"Benjamin Franklin?" Jennifer guessed. When he nodded, she hooked her arm around his. "That's harsh, Ev," she laughed. "Give the poor kid a break."

Enjoying her arm through his, Evan grinned. "Maybe. I'll think about it."

Sheppard fell in step with them. Ronon dialed the gate as they waited for the lock. "Well, did we just complete a mission with the good doctor here without getting ourselves into any trouble?"

Snorting, Evan looked at him. "Don't be so quick to speak. We're still not through the gate."

Separating herself from him, Jennifer stuck her nose in the air and pretended to be offended. "You watch, Evan," looking at him with a threatening glare. "I'm like an elephant. I have a good, long memory that won't forget."

Laughing, he followed her through the gate.


	3. Chapter 3

Jennifer had two more missions on her schedule for the week. Both went without even a minor incident. John and Evan seemed to be pleased with the outcome, earning her a reprieve from the teasing she'd endured after many bad missions.

Her luck held as well in her personal life. Jennifer hadn't received another letter since the last one she'd found during the mission at the clinic. However, she had a feeling that wouldn't hold up for very long. Several times, she wanted to tell Evan or Sheppard about them, but she found herself too embarrassed.

A few days later, she ended a long morning shift exhausted. Jennifer sincerely hoped Earth would be sending back more infirmary staff... specifically doctors with surgical training. As of now, she was the only doctor in the city who could handle most surgeries. It seemed like every time she was off shift, a team would come back injured and required her assistance.

A long hot shower was on her mind as soon as she opened her door. The paperwork had piled up again on her desk, forcing her to work quickly and multi-task between the required reports needing to be finished as well as checking on a few patients. Searching for her robe, she discovered it half covering a chair in the corner of her room. Pulling off clothes on her way to the shower, she discarded them on the floor and stepped into the hot spray. She must have stood there for minutes before moving to wash her hair and finish cleaning up.

Unable to stand any longer, she toweled herself dry and wrapped her aching body into her robe. Groaning, she willed herself to walk to the bed and tumbled onto it, wet hair and all, and fell fast asleep.

* * *

Three hours later, she woke up, feeling refreshed. Then Jennifer glanced at the clock. With a groan, she sat up. Noting how long she slept, she realized it would throw her off the rest of the night. Whenever she took a long nap during the day, sleeping that night was always a challenge.

Jennifer grabbed her clothes, changed, and headed to a late lunch. Her hair, which had still been wet when she woke up, tumbled into waves. A few nurses had mentioned she was lucky that her hair was naturally wavy and didn't need to be styled in a time crunch.

As she passed a few personnel, she sensed some sort of excitement in the air. Hearing the random comments about a party made her realize that tonight was the big social event everyone had been talking about for weeks.

She didn't know anyone well enough to sit by in the mess hall. It was about 1500 in the afternoon, when most had already eaten lunch and none were thinking about dinner. Jennifer had begun her shift at 0300 today, so her schedule was completely off.

It surprised her when Lorne's team- at least Anderson and Miller- walked in, grabbed their trays, and headed towards her. Pleased to have someone to talk to, she smiled at the men.

"Hey guys," she greeted. "Just getting back?"

Miller grunted. "Yes. I thought I was going to starve to death in that post-mission debriefing. Woolsey kept going over the littlest of details. Even Lorne was getting irritated, which doesn't happen often."

Anderson didn't even look up but sent a quick greeting to her before grabbing his fork. He began shoveling in the food as soon as he sat down. Jennifer watched, amused.

"Glad I was the one you sat by, guys," she grinned. "Just in case Captain Anderson chokes on his pork chop and needs the Heimlich Maneuver."

"Funny, doc," he mumbled, looking up finally since he had to chew before he could resume clearing the plate. "My stomach was so loud, even Sheppard could hear it from across the table."

Evan came up to the table and set his tray down. It was piled with more food than usual.

"Jen, I'm pretty sure Woolsey needs to be reported," Evan said, cutting into his meat. "The acting CMO of Atlantis should be aware that he's trying to starve military personnel."

Jennifer laughed. "That's what I'm hearing." She finished her own food, not at all surprised when Anderson went up for seconds.

"Ready for the party tonight?" Miller asked both of them.

They both groaned. Evan looked at Jennifer, shrugging. "I guess I'd sound like an old man if I admitted I'd rather catch up on some sleep."

Miller snorted. "That you would, grandpa." Knowing full well he could get away with teasing his CO off duty, he pushed on. "Just make sure to bring your cane and we'll see that you get back to the nursing home tonight."

Evan kicked him under the table.

"Well, then, I guess I won't admit the same thing. Even though I just took a three hour nap after my shift. Anyways, I better get some paperwork done in the infirmary before everything starts tonight. See you both later."

Miller watched his CO's eyes follow her as she made her way out the door. When she exited the mess hall, he turned his eyes back on Miller.

"What?" Evan said, defensively..

Slowly smiling, Miller looked at Evan innocently. "Nothing." Changing the subject before Evan realized he had been caught, Miller watched Anderson sit back down. "I hear there are going to be prizes for the winners during the games tonight. You guys hear any rumors?"

Anderson nodded. "Yup. I know one of the organizers. That botanist—Michelle—well, she said her department was in charge of them. They got Woolsey to approve a few ones I'm sure will have people fighting for."

Evan's interest picked up. "Like what?"

"One's for the ladies... a date with Sheppard, believe it or not. Surprised they didn't hit you up for that too. Ronon got talked into offering a private training lesson," Anderson grinned. "Other than the ladies, what man would take that? Like I really want an extra beating from that man. There's one that let's you and someone else leave the city and spend the day wherever you choose, as long as it's on an approved list of safe planets."

"Really?" Evan asked, finishing his meal.

"Yeah, you interested, boss?" Anderson asked.

Evan nodded. "Jen and I were talking on that last planet. It'd be nice to visit there off duty."

His two officers looked at each other, eyebrows raised. Typically Evan, although he was friends with Jennifer, referred to her as Keller or "doctor" in front of his men. It was the second time during the conversation he'd slipped. "So if you won," Miller asked, deciding to be the brave one, "you'd ask Dr. Keller to go with you?"

"Sure," Evan shrugged. "She needs a day off. I could paint, she could read. It'd be nice." He narrowed his eyes on the men. "Why?"

"Nothing, Lorne," Miller said, shaking his head at his CO's denial that Keller meant more to him than just friends. "You'll find out soon enough. Hopefully."

* * *

Jennifer stepped into the large room, discovered recently by a few military personnel. It must have served as a large gathering place for the Ancients, possibly a place to hold city-wide meetings. Skip forward to the present day, it made a great location for the social committee's Game Show party.

Colorful decorations placed in several corners of the room made Jennifer feel like she was back on Earth, attending a high school or college party. And making her feel like the awkward kid looking around the room for someone she knew.

"Hey," Evan said, brushing her shoulder. "Did you just get here?" He was already holding a can of Pepsi. The last shipment from the _Daedalus _contained party supplies the committee requested, including soft drink beverages._  
_

"Yup," she replied, relieved to see him. As much as the inhabitants of the expedition saw each other, Jennifer didn't find much time to socialize outside of the infirmary. Unless she had treated someone, Jennifer found she still hadn't met many of the expedition members.

"Dr. Keller," Anderson said, smiling at the doctor. "Glad you made it. Lorne was wondering when you were going to get here." He smiled at his CO, who sent him a censuring look. "Ah, can I grab you a pop? They brought back a ton on the last shipment."

"Soda, Anderson. It's called a soda," Lorne grinned.

Anderson crinkled his nose. "What? No, man, only southern folks call it 'soda.' And old folks." Turning to Jennifer, he waited for an answer.

She grinned back at Anderson. "Sorry, Captain," she shrugged. "I'm from Wisconsin. And we call is soda."

"Doc," he said, setting his Coke down and putting an arm around her shoulders. "We need to talk. Now, where I'm from in Michigan, it's called pop. Say it with me now," he waited for her to repeat it with him. "Pop. Now doesn't that roll off your tongue better than 'soda?'"

Evan laughed at Anderson's ease with Jennifer. If it had been anyone else, he would've immediately set out to get her away from them.. especially anyone who placed an arm around her like that. But his team members were genuinely just friendly toward her.

Rodney, who'd been overhearing, stepped in. "Actually, Anderson, it's more than a Michigan thing." Happy to grab everyone's attention, he paused dramatically. "It's a debate the Americans have... usually something to talk about at a dull party... present situation excluded, of course. But anyways, in the States, most northern regions call carbonated beverages 'pop.' The southern states refer to them as 'coke,' which confuses the heck out of me... if I want a Pepsi, then I call it a coke? Ah, well, furthermore, states to the far west, a few patchy areas in the midwest, as well as the New England states call it a 'soda.'"

"And that," Anderson chimed in, completely amazed, "is way more information than I wanted to know on that debate, McKay." He tugged Jennifer in the direction of the refreshments. "Come on, our team and SGA-1 is about to battle it out in _Family Fued_."

To her amazement, Jennifer began to loosen up and have fun. Anderson grabbed her an A & W root beer and escorted her to a chair. They game started just a few minutes later. Watching Lorne and Sheppard's team compete on an Atlantis version of _Family Fued_ had her rolling in her seat with laughter. Radek hosted, much to the dismay of McKay, which caused several arguments during the game. Laura Cadman, whom she absolutely loved talking to when she was on Atlantis, sat next to her, hissing Sheppard's team and screaming victory when Evan and the guys got ahead in the game. In the end, Lorne's team pulled off a victory, earning them each a prize— a goody basket of food from Earth.

McKay, obviously a sore loser, muttered something about a rematch before running over to the _Jeopardy_ game area, where he was playing host. Jennifer laughed as she saw the categories posted about each column: Atlantian termonology, Sheppardisms, Athosian people, name that disaster, Wraith devices, and mess hall grub.

Evan leaned over, whispering in her ear, making Jennifer jump a mile. She caught the faint smell of his aftershave as he pulled her close to him. "Rumor has it that two out of the five questions in the fourth category revolve around a Keller mission." He ran away from her before she could land anything on him, making her laugh. For the second time today, she felt flutters in her chest after talking with him. Shaking her head, she told herself to get a grip. _No need to complicate her life and ruin a good friendship, _she thought.

Nevertheless, Jennifer followed his retreat over to the _American Gladiator_ set up. There, Ronon stood waiting for challengers. As she wandered to the area, Jennifer overheard a few people say that about ten military guys had tried and failed so far.

"What's the prize?" Jennifer asked a group of scientists.

"A trip off world, your choice of destination," one replied. "Why? Thinking about trying for it?"

"Please," she retorted. "Do I look stupid?"

The crowd began to murmur as someone approached Ronon. Seeing it was Evan, she moved forward.

"Better grab your medical kit, Dr. Keller," Woolsey murmured next to her.

Sheppard came from behind both of them. "Actually, he may just surprise us. Lorne's been getting extra training from Ronon a few nights a week."

"Ah," Jennifer said. "So that's why he's been listed as a visitor in the infirmary so much lately. I haven't had a chance to ask him. I've been working odd shifts this week."

Ronon had set up a few tasks to test both a competitors speed and agility. Due to the limited resources, he couldn't replicate many of the actual events he had watched on Sheppard's DVD of the series, but he did a good job with what he had at his disposal. When the whistle sounded, both men took off running. It shocked many when Evan just barely trailed Ronon throughout the entire course. The first task was weight lifting, where the men had to bench press ten counts, overseen by a major who frequented the weight room with Ronon. Evan lagged slightly behind Ronon but made up for it on the jump rope, where he sailed past the warrior after Ronon got tangled once in the rope. Everyone cheered for Evan, glad for the man who was the obvious underdog.

The next task would prove to be the hardest... the two men had to stand on a narrow platform with a staff. Whoever knocked the other person off first would have the shortest route to the next task, leaving the other to make their way up through additional obstacles. The two men battled for several minutes, until Evan shocked everyone and caught Ronon off balance, sending him teetering sideways and falling off the platform.

A Wraith stun gun was set up at the end of the course. The opponents had to take a shot at a target and be able to land three in the inner circle. Although he was used to his hand gun, Evan made off with the shots after a few tries and ran to the finish line just ahead of Ronon.

Jennifer cheered, happy to see that he'd won. Ronon grudgingly congratulated the man, handing him an envelope with his prize. She'd wanted to congratulate him, but was pulled by Laura in the opposite direction to partner up with her on _Win, Lose, or Draw_ along with a few nurses.

As the night wore on, Jennifer's eyes began to get heavy. Despite her enjoyment, she finished the game and left to grab some water at a nearby table. Within a few minutes, Evan's team, minus the Major, came up to her table.

Adams was grinning, bragging about winning a living quarter's upgrade at the _Wheel of Fortune_ table. "Man, I'm outta that dinky room. You guys saw it. It's smaller than your private bathrooms."

"Hey, we didn't always live in those rooms," Anderson said. "But even I'll admit your room seemed like it was designed for a small kid or something."

Miller slapped Adams' back. "We'll help ya move tomorrow before lunch. 1100 hours. Be ready."

With laughter crinkling his eyes, Evan arrived and sat down, unable to stop smiling.

"What's up, Lorne?" Anderson asked.

He looked at Jennifer. "You know that nurse on nights right now? Tricia or something?" She nodded. "Well, she just won a date with Sheppard on the _Wheel of Fortune_ table."

Sheppard chose that minute to sit down. Evan tried his best to stop laughing, but failed.

"Lorne, you have to sleep sometime," Sheppard warned. "And I swear, I'll get you back for this."

Miller looked at the two commanding officers. "What did he do?"

Glaring at Evan, Sheppard paused to take a long drink. "Only planted a rumor that the prize was to go out with him, not me. Ronon was in on it too. Guess they found it funny since this nurse has the hots for the major over here."

Jennifer would have scolded them for poking fun at one of her nurses, but even she didn't get along with Tricia Grady, who'd arrived a few months back. Not saying a word, she just patted Sheppard's hand.

"Well, at least she won't hit on you during the date," Jennifer consoled, then looked slyly over at Evan. "Or maybe she'll give up on Ev and move on to bigger and better things."

"Hey," Evan said, flicking a straw wrapper at her. "Who you calling bigger and better?"

Sending him a look that could only be interpreted as an act of flirtation, she shrugged. "Rumor has it Sheppard's a sure bet as being a better kisser." Batting her eyelashes, she sent Evan an innocent look.

"Ohhhhhh!!!!" The guys at the table roared, grinning as Jennifer slam dunked their CO. Evan sat, dumbfounded as he watched her come further out of her shell right before his eyes. Added to the fact that she was blatantly flirting with him, his heart leaped in his chest. Sheppard laughed, forgetting his recent irritation with Evan.

"And that, gentlemen, is how you gracefully exit a room," Jennifer said, standing up. "But because I barely got here without getting lost and it's getting late, I'd love to ask one of you men to escort me back to my quarters." She looked pointedly at Evan, raising her eyebrows. He grinned, starting to stand up and thinking it was a peace offering, when she diverted her gaze to Adams. "Lieutenant, would you do me the honors?"

Adams looked at Evan, who was grating his teeth as the men shouted again, clapping at Jennifer's ability to poke fun at him for the second time in minutes. Deciding to push his lucky streak for the night and not have Lorne angry with him, Adams leaped up.

"Sure, Dr. Keller," he said formally, hoping to show Lorne he was just doing a good service and not trying to hit on the doctor.

As they two walked away and the rest of his team moved to play another round of a game, Sheppard turned to Evan. "Man, she sure has gotten over that shy thing. I'm beginning to like this version of the Doc."

Evan just looked at Sheppard, shaking his head. "You and me both," he murmured under his breath.

* * *

The next day, Evan found himself with a day off and nothing to do. Looking at the master schedule, he saw Jennifer had the day off as well. Opening a private communications channel to Sheppard, he asked and was given permission to cash in on his winnings from the previous night. Verifying that he could return with Jennifer to the planet they'd visited a few weeks before, he began to pack up his supplies.

He headed towards the infirmary, knowing full well he would find Jennifer there even on her off day, he walked into the room. Breathing a sigh of relief that Tricia was not on duty, he headed to her office. Marie, the infirmaries head nurse, was sitting next to Jennifer and looking over some paperwork.

Evan knocked on the wall, announcing his presence. Seeing him, Jennifer reddened slightly, probably remembering her bold teasing from the night before.

"Hey," he said, ignoring her embarrassment. "Marie, think you can spare Keller for a few hours?"

Marie looked over at her CMO, who was looking at Evan different than she had seen her look at him before. "Ah, yes, major. I'm actually fully capable of finishing this up on my own. And Dr. Keller is supposed to be off today."

"Great," he held his hand out, helping her stand. "I have the perfect romantic day planned for us." Grinning at Jen's shocked expression, her watched her eyes fly wide opened. Placing an arm around her waist, he guided her towards the door of the infirmary, clear in front of all staff who watched them walked by. Judging by their equally shocked expressions, he was assured that as soon as they left, the rumors would start flying.

In the hallway, he dropped his arm, laughing at her silence. "What? You seem to be less brave without my guys around."

Tongue in cheek, she just shook her head. "I should've known I'd pay for all of that. Now you're going to have my entire staff thinking we have a thing going."

Evan held his tongue with what he wanted to say. "Not your entire staff... just a few nurses. I didn't see any doctors around. Anyways, let's swing by your room. We're leaving in a few minutes."

"As in, off-world?" Jennifer returned. "You're kidding me. On a mission?"

"No," he shook his head. "I won that prize last night against Ronon. The one where you get to spend the day somewhere else. Thought you'd enjoy going back to that planet and read a book while I paint. You can keep me company."

"Seriously? Who else is going?"

"Just us," he said, wagging his eyebrows, knowing full well they were in hearing distance of a few men patrolling the halls. "Why would I bring someone else on our date?"

Jennifer just closed her eyes as the men both looked up, surprised. "Seriously. I'm going to kill you." Seeing that she had no choice, she hurried into her room, grabbed a book, and quickly changed in her bathroom to capri Khaki's and a short-sleeved top that had a habit of riding down her shoulders. The strapless bra she switched into made sure no straps were showing.

Knowing she wouldn't be long, Evan looked around her room and stayed standing. Spying an envelope with her name on it near the door, he picked it up.

"Hey, you know you have a letter on the floor over here, Jen?" Evan called out as she flew out of the bathroom. It took him a second to adjust to her in clothes other than her uniform. The deep purple of her shirt made her look even more beautiful. He eyed the silver hoops she had put in her ears and the light hand of makeup she must've added in the bathroom, wondering if she'd done that for him.

He shook his head. Neither one of them were interested in dating. So why was he thinking of her more than a friend after knowing her this long?

Evan didn't realize she'd paused, glancing at the note like it was going to attack her. She reluctantly took it, setting it in her drawer. "It's nothing," she lied, picking up her stuff. "Let's go."

Grabbing a pair of flip flops she was so fond of on her days off, she turned back to the room and snatched a blanket off her bed.

Confused at her reaction, he decided not to push her on it. For some reason, the note made her looked stressed, which was the opposite feeling he wanted her to feel today. She worked too hard, and the prospect of them spending a few hours away from the city made him want to forget anything on either of their minds.

Especially this growing feeling of attraction he was beginning to feel for her. Noting how the shirt she wore kept moving off her shoulder slightly, revealing a creamy pale amount of skin, he sighed. _Fat chance of that happening today_, he thought.


	4. Chapter 4

They made their way to the gate and waited until the control room dialed the address. Sheppard swung by with a small bag, saying it was lunch for the pair. He'd offered to grab something since he'd been in the mess hall when Lorne had called him.

"Lorne, I order you to make sure she relaxes," Sheppard said. "Word in the infirmary is she's been practically living there lately."

Evan gave a mock salute to Sheppard.

Stepping through the gate, they took off walking toward the spot they'd both commented about the last time there were on the planet.

Evan found a good angle where he wanted to start rough sketching the mountains before painting. Spreading her blanket, Jennifer placed her canvas bag that held a few things she'd brought on the side of the blanket, laying down by it and using the bag as a pillow. Meanwhile, Evan set up his supplies while she read.

"Did you have a good time at the party last night?" Jennifer asked, opening her book. Squinting at the sun, she remembered sun block and sat up to rummage for it in her bag.

Evan eyed the mountains. "Beating Ronon was probably the highlight of my night, that's for sure." Eying her purposefully, he looked down at her. "The ending could have been better. A sassy doctor was ripping on me in front of my men."

"Hmmm..." she said as she began putting the lotion on her face, nose, and arms. "I wonder who that could've been?" Standing, Jen handed him the lotion. "Man up and put some on. I don't need you to get skin cancer from this planet."

Agreeing, he put some on his face as well as his forearms. Because the back of his neck was exposed, Jennifer moved behind him and motioned for him to put a little in her hands. She did it out of the habit of being a doctor, but outside of the infirmary, she found that touching Evan was completely different. She pulled back his t-shirt and applied it on his neck. Rubbing it gently beneath his hairline, Evan felt himself tense when her fingers connected with his skin.

When she was finished, he couldn't help himself. "Need any help putting some on?" as he gestured to the lotion he'd handed back to her.

She shook her head, blushing. "I'm good." The thought of his hands on her right now, with no one around, didn't seem like the safest thing to do. Pretending to open her book and act nonchalant, he grinned as it took her almost a full minute before realizing it was upside down.

He looked back at his empty canvas. _So the feeling was mutual_, he thought. _And what were they going to do about that?_ Evan wondered to himself. Deciding to just enjoy the day without complicating it, he returned his attention to his painting. The mountains were amazing to sketch in his notebook, something he always did before beginning any project. When he was finished, he heard Jennifer open her bag and open a bottle of water for herself. She seemed content, enjoying just laying without the normal day to day stress she seemed to have lately with the short-handed amount of doctors in the infirmary.

Evan opened his watercolors, beginning to paint the range of mountains in front of him, focusing on the outline of the landscape first. His artistic side came from his mother, who encouraged Evan to paint growing up. She taught at the local college now, to both the young and surprisingly to seniors who wanted to learn to paint. He never strayed to other mediums, but instead stuck with painting. Inspired by a few of the wildflowers, he walked nearby to the hill to pick a few, gathering a bunch to lay at his feet. His plans were to paint the flowers into the scene.

Checking on her again after an hour, Evan wasn't surprised to see her sleeping. She'd pulled the shawl she had received on the mission from the grateful woman over her arms and shoulders. He grinned at her. Her book was laying face down on her stomach, holding the spot she'd left. One arm was thrown across her forehead while the other loosely held the book in place. A hint of mid-drift showed, revealing a thin line of pale skin. The flowers he had already captured on canvas were slowly escaping his side, due to the wind blowing across the plain. They began to scatter around Jennifer, making a breathtaking sight.

Evan couldn't resist reaching for his drawing book. He grabbed a pencil and drew the scene before him. He'd never been one to sketch people, but he couldn't pass up this image. He worked fast, detailing the sketch after filling in the lines of her profile. Glancing at his watch, he saw they had a few hours left. He set aside the mountains and began painting her, working feverishly before she woke up.

When he finished, he looked down, amazed. He still had some work to do, but given the small amount of time he spent, it surprised him how well it turned out. Setting down his materials, he felt the muscles in his back and moved to stand up. Looking down, he saw she was still sleeping. Feeling hungry, he left his two paintings to dry while he raided the bag Sheppard had packed for them.

The movement made Jennifer stir. Wincing at the sun, she shielded her eyes. "Hmmm..." she groaned. "I guess I fell asleep."

Evan was sitting nearby her on the blanket, already eating. He offered her a sandwich and a bottle of water, passing it to her as she sat up. "Guess the book wasn't good, huh?"

"No," she said, opening the bag. "It's good. I was just tired. Too wound up last night to sleep, I guess. And this sun is so relaxing."

He continued to eat, watching her slowly eat her sandwich. She noticed the flowers on the blanket and fingered the petals.

"Where did these come from?" she asked, sniffing them.

He motioned over his shoulder. "Over on the hill. I wanted to see what they looked like up close for the painting."

"Did you get much done? Jennifer asked, nodding at the easel set up a few yards away.

Evan nodded. "Actually, I did. It was fun."

She grinned. "Are you the type that gets testy if someone looks at your work before it's done?"

He shook his head. "No. I'm the first to admit that I'm far from being anything more than an amateur. My mom taught me the basics, but I never got beyond that. I think the better you are, the more criticism hurts," he gestured. "Take a peak."

Jennifer got up to inspect the drawings. She gasped when she saw the one of her. "You drew me!" she exclaimed, unable to take her eyes off of it.

"Yeah, sorry. Almost forgot about that. The flowers blew over you and I couldn't resist." He tried to downplay the painting, but the truth starred at him as he glanced back at the painting. He had painted her like a man painted a woman he cared about.

She barely heard him speaking. Despite the fact he'd never taken courses beyond what his mother taught him at home, the man had a natural talent. Jennifer couldn't believe the beautiful way he'd captured the moment. The flowers sprinkled around her, sun shining... she could see the scene alive in front of her, complete with the gentle breeze sending a lock of her hair into the wind and the sun kissing her face. It was all captured in the painting.

He moved behind her, startling her. "Sorry, I should've asked. But you were snoring."

His comment sent her out of her trance. "I do not snore."

Evan laughed, packing up his paints. "I know. Just joking."

She moved her attention back to the paintings, now moving on to the mountains. It wasn't quite as finished as the first one. As if something had interrupted his work. Unsure how to feel, she decided to ignore the feelings growing inside of her for the man standing next to her.

"You've got talent, Ev," she murmured, kneeling closer to inspect the landscape. "I've never seen your work."

"You should see the stuff my mom has done," he replied, brushing off the compliment. "Well, we have about an hour left. I'm about done with what I want to do today. I can work off sketches to finish the rest. Anything you want to do?"

Her eyes wandered around the hills. Looking up at the clouds, she watched as they moved quickly across the sky. "I don't think I want to wander too far from the gate. How about some cloud watching?"

He laughed. "Sounds about the speed I'm looking for. Painting makes me tired."

Laying down on the blanket a few feet from each other, both propped up by bags they had brought, they took turns laughing about what shape they thought each cloud looked like. When it was time to leave, they both got up and packed up.

As they approached the gate, Evan tensed when he saw it suddenly activate. Dropping his items to the ground, he grabbed for his gun and stood in front of her. "Be ready to head for the trees."

They waited and then relaxed when Ronon stepped through the gate. Grabbing his communicator, Evan called his name, asking what was wrong.

"Get here fast," Ronon said. "They need Keller."

Picking up his stuff, they made their way down the slope and to the gate.

"What happened?" Jennifer asked, in full doctor mode.

Ronon called out to her as he dialed the gate back. "It's Adams," he explained, looking at Evan as the gate opened. "Anderson and Miller found him about ten minutes ago in his room. Someone messed him up bad, sometime after breakfast."

"What?" Evan exclaimed, running after both of them as they stepped through the gate.

Jennifer dropped her stuff next to Evan's pile he'd carried back and flew to the infirmary with both men close behind her. As soon as the doors opened, Marie called over to her. She stopped to scrub her hands and put on a medical jacket.

"Someone give me an update, fast," Jennifer called out authoritatively, shocked at the scene before her. Adams was covered in blood, unconscious. Bruises littered his face.

"A call came in from the two men who found him like this," Marie shot out. "His pulse is thready. There's a head wound. Bleeding seems to have stopped, but I suggest we move him to the scanners."

Jennifer shouted at a nurse to cut his clothes off as they wheeled him under the scanners. She inspected his ribs, guessing at least a few were cracked, and gasped at the damage over the young man's body.

Evan and Ronon stood in the corner, watching. Sheppard quickly joined them, as well as Woolsey and the rest of SGA-1. They watched Jennifer work quickly, assessing the damage and scanning his body. She called out orders in a loud, clear voice, then began monitoring his life scans into the device she held in her hands.

Sheppard swore under his breath. "How did this happen? Did he have any enemies?"

"No, not that I know of. The kid just got here. He's been on good terms with my team ever since that mission with Jen," Evan shook his head. "Any alcohol on base that we know of? Maybe someone hung over from last night?"

"No. You know how strict the IOA is with that," Sheppard said. "Rodney, any scans of intruders in the city?"

Rodney, wide eyed, shook his head. "None. I checked as soon as the call came in."

Evan looked at Sheppard. "It's one of us."

His CO nodded. "I'll gather a team and search the city. Maybe we'll find something. Woolsey," he called out to the leader. "I'm recommending you have all unnecessary personal be aware that someone dangerous is lose on Atlantis. Everyone should be careful to stay in groups, or at least walk in pairs, outside their quarters." Sheppard tried to think of ways to prevent the man from escaping. "Woolsey, I'd also recommend having all teams scheduled to go off-world to stand down. I don't want this guy getting away. Lorne, stay here with him. I'll grab the rest of your team to join us. Give me an update once you talk with Jen."

He nodded. Keeping a safe distance away, he watched as the minutes flew by and Jennifer's team frantically tried to save the life of the newest member of his team. He heard the machine signal once that Adams had flat-lined. Refusing to lose him, Jennifer cleared the area and jump started the man's heart. When they got a life sign back on, she ordered more medicine into his IV, focusing on the wound on his head. Her team worked tirelessly for over an hour, when they finally got him stable.

Leaving Marie and another nurse to tend to his minor injuries, Jennifer walked to wash off the blood. Discarding the jacket, she walked over to Evan, shaking her head. "He's not out of the woods yet, but he's been stable for the past half hour. He has a concussion, bleeding on the brain, three cracked ribs, more internal bleeding, and a mess of other bruises and cuts." She beckoned Evan and Woolsey to her office. "I don't have to spell this out for you both. We're dealing with an attack of absolute rage. Someone wanted him dead."

Woolsey leaned forward. "We realize that, doctor. I can assure you that Colonel Sheppard's team is combing the city right now, trying to find this individual. Is there anything you need for us to do?"

Jennifer shook her head. "The next 24 hours are critical. I suggest we keep him here, opposed to sending him back through the gate to Earth. My team is trained for this type of injury. Between them and the technology here, he'll receive the best care."

Evan spoke for the first time. "Bottom line, Jen. What are his chances?"

She looked at him. "50/50. He's young and his vitals are staying strong. We lost him once, as you saw, but it didn't take much to bring him back. He's a fighter."

Evan nodded. "Mind if I stick around with him?"

Getting up, she looked at him. "Of course. I'll let the nurses know."

Evan walked over to the young Marine, shocked at his injuries now that he was standing above him. To think someone on the expedition did this was baffling. He looked back over at Jennifer, who was beside him checking his readings again. Not a good way to end what was beginning to be a relaxing day for both of them. Opening a private channel, he briefed Sheppard on Adams' condition.

He sat for a couple hours, silently watching over the man as Sheppard's team completed their search. Jen found him there, looking intently at the Marine, looking worried.

"Ev, go eat something," Jennifer gently persuaded him. "I'll come with you. Sheppard sent Ronon back to guard the infirmary. He'll be safe."

Evan jolted, almost forgetting the immediate threat on the base. The infirmary would probably be the first place the renegade man would go to finish the job on Adams. "Sure. Give me a minute to talk with Ronon."

He walked over to the Satedan, who was standing guard near the door. "What's the plan on guarding this place?" he asked the man.

"Sheppard and I will rotate through the night. Figured you'd want a shift too."

Evan agreed. Watching Jen come to meet up with him, he sent Ronon a glance. "Radio me if anything changes."

They walked the hallways, both a little preoccupied with the attack on Adams to think about anything else.

"Jen, I want you to be careful," Evan urged, looking around as they made their way to the mess hall. "Don't go anywhere without one of us. Promise?"

Jennifer agreed. "I will. Who do you think could do something like that?"

"That's the thing," he answered. "I don't. If we would've got a huge influx of new recruits, I'd feel a little better because we could focus on them. But other than Adams and then Sanchez, who seems like he checks out, there's been no one I can think of who'd do that to someone. At least, not to someone other than an enemy."

They ate in silence. Jennifer finally gave up, pushing away her tray. "Mind walking me back to my room? I'd like to sleep for a few hours before going back to look at him. I plan on staying there for the night just in case anything changes."

Evan gave up as well. "Sure. Let's go."

They made the trip to her room, noticing the change in tone from walking past a few people. Despite the excitement from the night before, everyone seemed to be back on edge due to the incident with Adams.

Jennifer opened her door, surprised that Evan followed her inside. Giving him a questioning glance, he made his way into her bathroom, checking everything.

"Call me paranoid, but it'll make me feel better to make sure no one is hiding in here," Evan explained, opening her closet. "Okay, I'm going to head back to the infirmary. You have a communicator in here?"

She nodded. "They'll let me know if anything changes."

"I'm more concerned that you have a way of calling for help," Evan said, brushing her arm. "Call me if you need to leave. And don't answer the door to anyone. I'm serious, Jen."

"Promise," she said, wanting desperately to have him gather her into his arms. His concern for her touched her, making Jennifer wish they could express what each other was thinking. Instead, she pulled her arms around herself, watching him leave.

She sat down on her bed, lying on top of the covers. Closing her eyes, she thought about the events that occurred in the last few hours. What started out as the perfect day ended horribly. Jennifer rolled onto her side, hearing a crunching sound like a piece of paper would make. Confused, she sat up and pulled back the covers. Tucked beneath her comforter lay an envelope addressed to her, composed in the dreaded penmanship she now recognized.

The envelope itself didn't scare her as much as the fact she found it in her bed. Someone had been in her room.

Jennifer's hands shook as she opened the envelope quickly, tearing the paper as she unfolded it.

* * *

_Thank you for all the kind reviews. It has been encouraging! Next chapter should be up tomorrow! _


	5. Chapter 5

_Dear Jennifer,_

_Lieutenant Adams will no longer be a bother to you. I've seen to it. _

_Yours forever,_

_A friend_

Her hand flew over her mouth, silencing a scream she made after reading the words. Sending the envelope sailing to the ground, she dropped the letter and moved to her communicator.

"Rodney, this is Dr. Keller. Open a private channel to Sheppard and Lorne." She tried to speak in even tones, but her heart was racing in fear.

After a moment, Rodney's voice came through. "All set."

"Keller, what's the problem?" Sheppard said slightly winded. She realized he must still be going through the city. Evan came through as well, sounding surprised to hear from her.

"Get to my room. Immediately." She took off the communicator without saying anything else and ran over to her dresser. Faintly through the communicator, she could hear Evan shouting her name. Opening the note she had put aside from earlier, she quickly scanned the message.

_Dear Jennifer,_

_I watched you tonight. It disappoints me that men continue to surround you._  
_You didn't seem bothered by the attention. What does that say about us?_  
_I'm sure you're fast asleep now. The temptation of letting myself inside your room_  
_so that we can finally be together is overpowering, but I know it's not the time yet._

_I hope in the future to see you back in the infirmary and out of the gazes of other men._

_All my love,_

_A friend_

_

* * *

_

Evan tore through the hallways, retracing his steps back to Jennifer's room. When he got there, he half expected her to be battling someone in her room. He had the code memorized, since Rodney had given it to him a few seconds ago. Instead, her communicator lay on her bed as she clutched a piece of paper near the corner of her room.

"Why did you end the transmission? Do you think I want to have a heart attack?" He grabbed her, making sure she was okay. To his surprise, she stepped into his arms and clung to him.

"Ev, it's all happening because of me," she said, shaking like a leaf. "The notes. I should've told someone sooner."

Sheppard came running through the door, Ronon a step behind him. Trying to figure out what was going on, he looked at Evan confused. "Is she okay?"

Evan pulled her back. Sitting her on the bed, he knelt in front of her. "Tell us what happened, Jen."

Jennifer took a deep breath. "I've been getting letters from someone," she looked up at them. "For a few weeks. There's been four of them, two of which I just found now."

Reaching over to her dresser, she grabbed the first two and placed them in order. "The first two were a little creepy, but I just didn't think anything of them. And then today happened. When you left," she said to Evan, "I found another one _in_ my bed. And then I remembered the other one that you found this morning before we left. He must've left it last night sometime but I didn't see it this morning before I went to the infirmary to meet with Marie."

The three men stood and went through the messages. Sheppard swore, Ronon's jaw clenched, and Evan just looked at her.

"The fourth one. You said you found it _in_ your bed?"

Jennifer nodded. "Under the comforter." She looked up at them. "He's been in my room. I don't know how. No one knows my password. Except maybe Rodney."

"But why Adams?" Ronon asked. "Why'd he go after him? Jen hangs more around us than him."

Evan sat down. "Because she asked him to walk her back last night after the party," he said. "And probably because he knows we're just friends with her."

Her stomach began to churn. She stood up, swaying. "I'm going to be sick," she whispered, running into the bathroom.

The three men watched helplessly as she shut the door, hearing her empty her stomach. Evan fisted his hand. Looking at the two men he trusted with his life, he turned to them.

"She's in trouble," he said, needlessly, but needing to speak aloud. "We need to place her on 24 hour guard."

Sheppard agreed. "With men we trust."

"Suddenly I'm not sure who to trust around here," Ronon growled. "I left a few marines in the infirmary to watch Adams. They've been with Sheppard since the beginning, but..."

"My team can be trusted. Anderson and Miller. They're solid. And neither of them have ever hinted at feelings for her." Evan walked over to Jennifer as she emerged from the bathroom. Walking her to the chair, he sat her down. "This is not your fault. Do you understand, Jen?"

"We're dealing with someone with a severe psychological problem," Sheppard chimed in. "And unless Adams can name his attacker, we're not letting you out of our sight until he's found."

"So what's the plan? Keep me in my room until we figure this all out?" Jennifer asked.

That was exactly what the three men in front of her wanted. Judging from their faces, they all were thinking the same thing.

"No, I refuse to be a prisoner. Not only that, we're short-handed in the infirmary right now. Sheppard," she said, turning toward him. "You know as well as I that we need another option."

Sheppard nodded. "Okay, Lorne says Anderson and Miller can be trusted. Let's post them both at your door every night until we find this creep. One of the three of us will be with you at all times. Jennifer, you're about to find out what having brothers is like."

"Lovely," she responded.

* * *

Anderson and Miller arrived. Sheppard briefed them out in the hallway while Ronon returned to the infirmary to stand guard over Adams. Evan was tempted to figure out an excuse to stay with her, but his priority needed to be assisting Sheppard in finding this man.

"You can trust them," Evan said, glancing in the direction of his men. "They're good guys."

"I know, Ev," she said quietly, sitting on her bed. "I'll be fine. Tonight I'm just going to try and sleep a little and then they can bring me back to the infirmary, where they plus Ronon can follow my every shadow."

The tension in the air wasn't just due to the current situation in the city. Too many moments in the past few weeks were transforming their relationship. Neither had any idea how it happened or what to do about it.

Evan's way of dealing with it was to make sure Jennifer was as secure as possible for the night. He made sure her communicator was working, left his knife on her nightstand, as well as checked and rechecked the immediate area of her room with Sheppard. Shutting her door, he let Sheppard walk ahead of him as his CO organized over the radio another group of military members to assemble a search party for the second time that night.

Evan turned to his men. Both were still in shock in finding their newest addition to their team almost beat to death in his room. Neither showed signs of anything but the seriousness of the situation. Somehow, he knew he didn't have to tell them how much danger Jennifer was in. But still, he found himself struggling with some form of parting words to them both.

Miller recognized his CO's attempt at giving them final orders. "Sir," he said, locking eyes with him. "We know. No one is getting past us."

Seeing them both understanding how much Jennifer meant to him, and to them, he tightened his lips. "Thank you."

"She's special to us too, Lorne," Anderson said. "Don't worry about her and go catch this guy. And if you find him..." he nodded at Miller. "We'd both like a shot at him."

Eyes determined, Evan glanced away but not before his men could see their superior officer's face hardening. "You'll have to get in line."

* * *

He found himself roaming the city for her a few days later. The usual spots— the mess hall, infirmary, and her quarters, turned up empty. Evan was finally going to give up and ask McKay to locate her when he found her in the weight room, with the rest of his team.

Sheppard said that Anderson and Miller volunteered to take the night shifts and part of the morning hours watching over Jen. He had a rough night watching over Adams' still form that he forgot about the arrangement. It'd been his third night sitting up with the captain, despite the doctors telling him that he didn't need to stay. Adams has improved greatly since that first night. Ronon had posted as guard just inside the infirmary doors 12-16 hours a day, while Sheppard relieved him while he slept.

Trying to stay undetected, he watched from the doorway as Anderson explained to her something about the weights she was about to use. Jennifer made the man laugh about something. It didn't surprise him that his team had grown closer than ever to Jennifer in the last few days.

"So answer us the age-old question, Keller," Miller called over as he benched a fair amount of weight. "What do women really want?"

She laughed, completing her reps. "You're really asking me? A doctor, who skipped grades in high school and has only one relationship that I could seriously count as my only experience with men," she laughed. "Come on, haven't you seen the movie with Mel Gibson? Shouldn't that explain everything?"

"Since when did a movie explain anything about life? Especially with Gibson in it?" Anderson grunted. "If you ask me, the answer is simply this. Women don't know what they want. And I don't mean that in a negative way, so no jumping down my throat here. It's just that every woman is different, so every woman either wants something different or hasn't figured out what they want yet."

Miller dropped his weights, staring at his friend. "Man, that's pretty deep. And profound."

Considering his words, Jennifer agreed. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think you nailed it."

"So, doc," Anderson said, grinning. "What does Jennifer Keller want?"

Interested in hearing her answer, Evan leaned forward. He watched her think for a few moments before turning back to him.

"Guess I fall into the category of women who don't know," she shrugged.

"Ha!" Miller said, moving beside her to stretch on the floor. "See, that gives men no help. Not that I'm hitting on you... rest assured. I'm kinda liking this friendship with a woman thing. Makes me feel like I have an inside edge on the working mind of a woman. And there's the fact that I enjoy my job and don't want Sheppard, Lorne, or Ronon to kick me out of here. But I don't get what's stopping you?"

"What? I had a crappy experience in college and haven't dived back into the dating game yet. And Atlantis is not a friendly place when it comes to dating. Especially for the CMO."

"Come on, Keller," Anderson said, moving toward the weight bench. "You must have some vision of the perfect man. Clue us in as to what a sane woman would want."

"Well," she thought, touching her toes, "I guess most women, myself included, want someone they're comfortable with. Almost like a best friend and more all in one package. Someone who respects and listens to you... who can make you laugh but at the same time comfort you at the end of a hard day. Someone who is loyal, protective but not in a smothering or psychotic way. And he has to smell incredible." She smiled, thinking of Evan.

"So money, power, a high position doesn't matter to women?" Miller said. "I've dated girls who just cared about what career path I was planning in the military so they could brag to their family and friends about it."

She scrunched up her nose. "Miller, you're always going to have twits like that. Money comes and goes. So does power. But who a person is on the inside... that stays, for the most part."

Anderson, who'd noticed his CO standing in the doorway a few minutes ago, grinned. "See, I need to find a woman like you. Pretty, intelligent... easy to talk to. Man, if I didn't see you as a kid sister... and if you didn't have the top military guys in Atlantis surrounding you... it would be a different story. Tell us, doc," he said, pretending he hadn't seen Evan yet, "is there anyone on base you feel like that about?"

She blushed. "No comment."

Both he and Miller just looked at each other, smirking. Before they could say anything more, Evan chose to walk in.

"What's up?" He called over to his men, then nodding to Jennifer.

"Speaking of our fearless leader," Miller muttered under his breath to Anderson, grinning. "Hey, Lorne. We're about ready to eat breakfast and crash. Who's on shift next with our Doc here?"

Evan sat down next to Jennifer, looking down at her. "Me."

"Have you slept?" Jennifer asked, knowing full well that he hadn't.

"I'll sleep later," he brushed off the concern. "Feel like going for a run?"

She nodded and stood. "Sure."

"Don't forget about the touch football game tonight, boss," Anderson reminded him. "It's still on from what Sheppard said earlier. He's refusing to let this guy take everything away from us."

He remembered signing up for the game weeks ago, before this ever started. Thanking his men for pulling a long shift, he told them to get some sleep and be ready to be back outside her door later that evening. Walking over to the groupings of lockers the SGC had sent back after many requests from the men, he grabbed a set of clean work out running clothes and shoes. "Give me a second to change before you leave."

Within a few minutes, Evan and Jen set off to run. The clouds in the sky currently gave a threat of rain, yet both of them ignored them. Evan let Jennifer set the pace as they made their way down the path that many runners in the city took.

"You okay with my guys taking the morning shift?" Evan asked evenly between breaths.

She nodded, pony tail swaying in the breeze. "Of course. You know we get along well."

"How are they dealing with being the ones to find Adams?" Evan asked, surprising her. He caught her look and explained. "Guys don't talk about stuff like that, especially military guys."

Jennifer considered her answer. "They're doing better. At first, I think they both felt guilty about not immediately befriending him. They really didn't connect with him until the mission I went on with you guys."

Evan snorted. "Now they spend every free moment they have, outside of sleeping or guarding you, sitting with him. Marie told them to keep talking to Adams, so they've been planning how they're going to 'pimp' his new room he won at the game night. When I sit with him, I have doctors telling me it's useless staying."

"Doctors differ on their opinions. There has been many documented instances where a person in a coma can recall overheard conversations. Keep talking to him. The medically induced coma is what's preventing him from waking up. We want him to heal as much as possible before he checks back into reality, which doesn't make Woolsey or Sheppard happy. As soon as we lift the coma today, I'm going to have to put Ronon on them both to prevent them from pouncing on the poor kid to see if he saw his attacker's face."

They continued their run, pushing themselves to run farther than the normal set track. Evan guided her to a remote part of the city he enjoyed running in.

"I'll be the first to admit that I'd be right behind them," Evan confided. "For the sake of Adams, you... the rest of the city's safety. We need to find this guy."

Jennifer looked up at the sky, brushing a drop of water off of her face. "Is it-" she stopped as suddenly the rain came down in buckets.

Both of them stopped running, completely shocked at the turn of the weather that quickly.

"Here," Evan pointed towards an overhang. "There's a little protection over there."

They ran to it, getting soaked in the process. There wasn't much room in the small area, forcing Evan to stand practically against Jennifer.

"Well, can't say I'm not shocked," he said, grinning. "I think your luck holds out even when we're not off-world."

"Hey," she said, laughing, "maybe it's not my luck but yours jinxing us this entire time. Ever think about that?"

He laughed as the rain picked up even more, sending Jennifer shrieking against him as a shield.

"I'm soaked!" She yelled, squinting her eyes and ducking her head at the spray.

Evan looked down at her. "I noticed." Guiding her against the wall, he stood so that he took the brunt of the rain that was angling toward them. It was as if the weather was purposely trying to pull them closer together in the tiny space. When he didn't remove his hands around her waist, Jennifer angled her head up at him, all of a sudden becoming serious.

"You know," he said over the sounds of the rain. "This would probably be the perfect opportunity to talk about something that's been on my mind."

Her hands came to his chest, loosely holding on to his shirt for balance. "And what's that?" Jennifer knew full well that he was thinking along the same lines that she was. He reached and pulled a wet strand of hair off of her check, then replacing his hand where the hair had laid, gently caressing her smooth skin.

"You." His eyes became a darker, a more intense blue as he moved his hand to cup the back of her neck.

Deciding to try a hand at flirting, she looked up at him coyly. "And what are you going to do about that, Major?"

Evan broke out in a smile, making her want to melt. "Something I should've done weeks ago." He gently pulled her towards him. Just as her lips were a fraction of an inch away, he heard Ronon calling for them on the radio.

Cursing, he backed away from her. Jennifer, who didn't have hers on, looked at him, confused.

"Ronon," he barked, sending Jennifer a look that he wasn't finished with her. "What do you need?"

"Get back here," Ronon replied. "Doc got another note. This time in the infirmary. It was just lying on her desk."

Evan swore. "Did anyone open it yet?"

"No." Ronon answered.

"We'll be there in ten." Evan cursed their luck, looking down at her. "They found another note."

The reality of the events of the past few days returned to her quickly. Nodding, she backed away from him. And just like that, the moment was over. "Let's go."

Grimly, they made their way back to the city.

"We're stopping at your room so you can change," Evan informed her. "The note's not going anywhere."

"I'm fine," she replied. "I'll dry. And I can always change into some scrubs."

"Negative," he said, then gave her a brief smile. "Trust me on this one. It'll only take a second."

"Why? Just to read the stupid note? I can change afterward."

Evan looked at her, and then down her body. "Jen, you're soaking wet. Need I remind you that 85% of this expedition is male. And currently, each piece of clothing covering you is clinging to every curve of your body." He caught her looking down, then blushing. "And while I don't mind a bit," he had the decency of grinning over at her but keeping his eyes above her neck, "let's keep the reputation of the CMO in tact and swing by your room. And prevent me from shooting anyone who ogles you."

Jennifer looked away, not believing they could joke around at a time like this. "You know, I think I will go change. Now that you mention it, it's a little chilly out."

Evan just laughed, following her down the hall to her room.


	6. Chapter 6

_Dear Jennifer,_

_The time has arrived. Before long, we'll be together._

_Colonel Sheppard insists on keeping you surrounded by his men, but they're no match for me._

_He thinks he'll keep you away, but I know you'll be happy with me._

_Just wait and see... soon._

_Together forever,_

_A friend_

As Jennifer read the note, her group of protectors surrounded her. Sheppard was agitated, Evan looked angry, and Ronon just looked like he wanted to shoot something.

"Alright, people, I want a list of everyone who had access to this infirmary since Keller has been out of her office," Sheppard barked.

"Colonel," she shook her head. "That would be next to impossible. I mean, I can give you a list of my people who were on shift, those who were logged in as getting treatment, but you know as well as I do that people stroll in here all the time. We have visitors, people helping someone in due to an injury..."

Sheppard let out a frustrated sigh. "Jen, I know you've been thinking these last few days. You still can't think of anyone this could possibly be? What about the handwriting? Do you recognize it?"

She sat, frustrated with herself. "No. I wouldn't even recognize yours. Everything is so digitalized that I rarely see anything hand written unless it's my own writing or Marie's."

Instead of sitting there with nothing to do, Jennifer grabbed a medical coat and went to check on Adams. His vitals were stronger today, prompting her to begin lifting him out of the coma. When Marie came over to assist her, she gave her instructions on his continuing treatment and then turned to Evan.

"Can you post a guard next to him?" She asked. "I know you stayed with him the last few nights, but for his safety, I think it's wise."

Evan agreed. "We already talked about it. The colonel, myself, Ronon, and my team will pretty much be taken off active duty as far as gate travel and will be taking turns between you and Adams. Neither of you will be in the city without at least one or two of us by your side."

"Do you think this guy will try and risk a visit to the infirmary? Especially if he thought Adams wouldn't survive this? He must be wondering if Adams saw his face."

"I'm not sure, Jen," Evan said, slumping in the chair next to Adams. "We're just going to have to wait and see."

* * *

Later, Sheppard relieved him for a few hours so he could get some sleep. He slept for several hours, waking up feeling refreshed. Since Jennifer was working a shift in the infirmary, Evan swung by for her before getting dinner.

He could tell she wasn't sleeping well. Despite having two guards outside her door, he could imagine her feeling scared given the present situation. And knowing Jen, she probably felt guilty that a man claiming to be in love with her had put a member of his team in the infirmary.

Patiently waiting for her to close down her lap top and work for the day, they walked together to the mess hall. He could tell she needed to unwind and get her mind off of everything for a few hours. Once they got their food, he sat down across from her.

"I signed up for a game of flag football awhile back. The game's tonight. It's USAF vs. USMC. You'll be safe there with so many people around, but I don't feel comfortable leaving you on the sidelines while I play."

She looked up, rolling her eyes. "Why does it sound like I'm being babysat during all of this? Seriously, if we're in a group with a bunch of huge Marines, I'm sure one of them will come to my rescue."

"What I'm worried about is that more than likely, our attacker and admirer is probably one of them," Evan said, finishing his dinner. "Sheppard will be there, but he's playing too. So are Anderson and Miller. And that's about all I trust right now, besides Ronon, who's on in the infirmary with Adams."

"Evan, I'll be fine," she said.

"Actually," he thought, "I have an idea. They always are off balance with men and women. You can just play on one of the teams."

She snorted her water and began choking. "Me? Play football? Evan, I may be able to keep up with you running, but a sport is a different story. I've never even been to a football game."

He smiled. "Relax, it's just a flag football game. You wear a flag around your waist. There's barely any contact." Evan went over the rules of the game with her, noticing that most of it was going in one ear and out the other.

"Come on," he reached up for her hand, grabbing both of their trays. "We'll try to get you on my team. You'll have fun."

* * *

Fun was not exactly how she'd describe her time before the game. Other then there was a sprinkling of women in the game, she was surrounded by male testosterone. Both sides, obviously each wanting to win, were trash talking each other. Glancing over at Evan and his team, she saw him grinning. Obviously, this kind of behavior was typical of one of their games.

She hadn't been able to be on his team. Instead, Laura Cadman came up when she was placed on the Marine side of the "field."

"Jen, have you ever even seen a game?" Laura laughed.

"What do you think?" Jennifer hissed, clearly giving away her insecurities about being on the field. Not only were both sides going to see what an idiot she was when it came down to things like this, there were spectators as well. Lots of spectators.

A few men came jogging up to them. "Nice," one eyed her. "We got the doc! No one on that side will touch her."

Laura looked at them, confused.

A man came forward, one Jennifer barely recognized as someone visiting from the last visit from the _Daedalus. _In the back of her mind, she began scanning some of the men around her, realizing one of them could possibly be who they were looking for. She studied the man in front of her. He was tall, about twice the size of Evan, and looked mean. When he spoke, though, he broke out in a smile. "Are you kidding, Cadman? What person would want to get the best of her? She's the one who decides which shots you need, which needles to use, how embarrassing your physical will be, and most importantly... she can send you back to Earth in a second. Keller has more power than Woolsey."

Shrugging, Jen nodded. "He's right, you know."

"Well, then let's feed her the ball and get this game won, guys!" Laura yelled.

"NO!" Jennifer yelled, although by that time the team had spread out. She turned around and saw the game was about to start.

The rules were pretty much the same as tackle American football, but that was not a big help to Jennifer. Even though her father watched a lot of football, she herself never got into the game. The only difference according to Evan was that instead of tackling a player, you had to remove the flag from the flag belt. Even though there was a totally non-contact version of the game, the leaders of both teams agreed to have some contact during the game. However, it had to be waist up and only to block a player from catching a ball.

The first half of the game flew by. Jennifer found herself having fun, even though she'd only passed the ball to another player successfully once out of the four times it came at her. She ended up paired up with Sheppard and laughed at his antics at getting away from her. He was like a kid, darting in between players at top speed, trying to escape her.

Laura was not happy that the Air Force was gaining a significant lead. Pulling together the team, the Marines put together a plan. At one point, Laura stopped listening to the men and pulled Jennifer aside.

"Hey, we need to make a few distractions," Laura said, whispering in her ear. "But I don't think Sheppard will buy it. Go stand by Lorne."

"And do what?" she asked.

Laura just looked at her. "Come on, be creative. Flirt a little. Distract him so that Sheppard can't run a play with him."

"I can't just go up and flirt with him!" Jennifer hissed.

Rolling her eyes, Laura just looked at her. "Please. I've heard from his team. You seem to be doing well in that area with him lately."

Turning red, she didn't realize she had been so obvious. Laura pushed her at Evan.

"Hey," Evan said when she got to his side. "Looks like you're having fun. What's up with Cadman?"

Jennifer just shook her head, trying to figure out how to distract him. There was a slight pause in the game as someone's shoe had flown off and needed to be fetched and put back on. Evan used the time to catch his breath, placing his hands on his knees to bend over and rest. He looked up at her, and she found herself having a hard time focusing herself. Even sweaty, the man was drop dead gorgeous.

Shaking her head, she tried to be Cadman for a minute. What would she do? Thinking over possibilities, she ended up thinking about earlier that day.

"I was thinking," she said, looking him in the eye. "We kind of got interrupted earlier. Maybe after the game, we should finish what we started earlier?"

Evan stood up, wiping the sweat from his forehead onto his sleeve. Seeing her looking serious, he cocked his head. "As in, our run?"

She shook her head, slowly walking toward him. Her eyes never left his as she moved just past the area of comfort in front of him. Because she was so close, the game, which had started again, disappeared to him.

"Actually," she murmured, making him take his own step toward her so he could hear what she was saying above the screaming around them. "I was thinking more along the lines of starting where we left off."

The smile cleared off of his face. His eyes darted to her lips and then back up to her eyes. She nodded, smiling just a fraction. And then all of a sudden, the football dropped a few feet away from them.

"Lorne!" Sheppard yelled, hands upturned questioningly. "Wake up!"

Evan, still looking sideways at Jennifer, tried to get ready for the next play. Knowing she'd have to be more bold this time around to distract him, she allowed him to step in front of her but placed her hands on his arms.

"We're allowed to touch a little, right?" she asked innocently. Jennifer felt him jump beneath her hands. Seeing Laura laughing in the distance, she grew even more bold and moved them slowly to his back. "This is okay, right?"

Evan didn't respond. Totally off his game, he heard the football fall again near him.

His teammates were yelling for him to open his eyes. They must've given up on him when he destroyed a third play. A whistle went off a minute later, sending Laura running over and patting Jennifer roughly on the back.

"Nice work, Jen!" she laughed. Noticing Evan's confusion, Laura hooted at his dazed state. "Man, she's good."

Breaking out in a smile, Jen sent him a triumphant look. Understanding dawned. Instead of being angry, he took a few steps back and leveled a look at her. His lips upturned.

"You haven't learned your lesson yet, have you?" Evan said, just loud enough for her to hear. "Paybacks, Jen... looking forward to thinking up a good one."


	7. Chapter 7

_Thanks for the interest in the story and for all of the reviews. There are two more chapters after this one. Thanks again to Baileyak1 for taking the time and editing my chapters for me! I really appreciate it! _

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* * *

  
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By the end of the week, no new letters arrived. Between the infirmary being watched by a rotation of her three unofficial bodyguards and the healthy half of Evan's team guarding her door, there wasn't much of an opportunity to slip anything by them.

Jennifer felt the men could back off a bit, especially with the escort to and from the bathroom, mess hall, and sitting in on her meetings with the heads of her department.

When Sheppard escorted her back to her room that night, he lingered a bit to talk with Anderson and Miller. The men still guarded her fiercely, despite the lack of anything remotely significant happening that week. But Anderson had loosened up a little to joke once in awhile with her, teasing Jen that the women in the city were beginning to get jealous of her nightly escorts around the city.

She had just gotten out of her uniform and into cotton sleep pants and a buttoned matching top when she heard the shots. She could hear yelling outside of her room immediately. Diving for the communicator, she got down next to her bed, screaming for Evan and Sheppard. Faintly, she heard Evan shouting they were on their way.

Silence came just as quickly. Trying to make out any sounds, over the thunderous pounding of her heart, she heard scuffling coming from an area away from her room. A moan sounded outside her door. Running to the door, she called out.

"Anderson! Miller! What's going on?"

Another shot sounded, significantly away from the room. Throwing caution into the wind, she opened the door.

"Doc, get back inside," Miller yelled over to her, leaning against wall. He was injured— a gunshot wound to the shoulder. Yet he still held his gun towards the hallway, protecting her.

She looked down the hallway. "Where's Anderson?"

"He took off chasing him. Sheppard and the others are on their way."

Hearing the distant sounds of gunshots, Jennifer jumped across the hall and helped him into her room, shutting the door. She tore at the buttons of his shirt, finding a clean t-shirt to press onto his bleeding shoulder.

Nearly a minute later, they heard something outside the door. Then someone began pounding on her door.

"Open up!" she heard a voice demand. They could hear him trying to enter a code to her room, but thankfully Rodney had rigged it with a new code that no one on base could override and only Jennifer, Evan, and John knew.

Miller grabbed her, sending Jennifer behind him. "No."

"Keller, we're almost there," Sheppard yelled into the communicator, which she forgot she still had on.

"Colonel, did you send someone ahead? Someone's trying to break down the door," Jennifer whispered.

Evan's voice came through. "Jen, don't open it."

Jennifer was scared, but also knew she had to stall so that whoever was on the other side would be there when the guys arrived.

"Who are you?" She screamed. "Why are you doing this?"

"Shut up," someone screamed. "Open up or I kill the captain."

They both looked at each other. Jennifer felt her heart stop when she heard Anderson call out.

"Don't!" he rasped. "Stay insi—"

Anderson was interrupted and they heard a single bullet go off. Jennifer screamed.

"His blood is on your hands, Jennifer," the man called out. "This isn't over."

They heard him walk away. Miller got on the radio, calling for Sheppard's team and letting them know the man was on the run. He had to restrain Jennifer from opening the door.

"Anderson's outside! We have to get to him." Jennifer had tears running down her cheeks.

"What happened?" Evan called out on the radio. "Miller, is the hallway by her door clear?"

"I think so," he responded, voice getting fainter. "Sir, we have reason to believe he just shot Anderson. Doc's going crazy trying to get to him."

"Jennifer, you stay inside," Evan shouted. "We'll be there in less than ten seconds."

When they arrived, Evan radioed for a gurney upon seeing the sight before him. Anderson was slumped over several feet away from her door. Sheppard and Ronon split up, each taking a few men and searching for the man who caused the scene that lay in front of them. Evan directed the two men who stayed with him to cover the door as entered the code to her room. Inside, he barely had time to prepare as Jennifer came, flying out of the room, leaping next to Anderson.

"Get back inside, Jen," Evan shouted, moving to haul her back himself.

She refused. "He doesn't have time," feeling for his faint pulse. Unconscious, she swore as she saw the wound. It was bad. As bad as it could have been. "Get me something to press on him to stop the bleeding." Evan was just stared as he saw the extent of his officer's injury in front of him. It didn't take a doctor to know he was watching Anderson die in front of him. "Evan, now!"

He moved back to the room, grabbing a towel from her bathroom, and pressed it against Anderson. "What about Miller?"

Jennifer nodded. "He got shot once, but he's nothing compared to Anderson." The gurney arrived with Marie running ahead of it. Evan helped the infirmary staff pull Anderson onto it. "Walk Miller down. I have to go."

"Jen, he's still on the loose," Evan protested.

"Then send these two guys with me, but I'm going. If we don't get him into surgery within the next few minutes, he's gone."

Evan didn't want to let her out of his sight, but he felt the obligation to bring Miller down himself.

"Go with her, sir," Miller said at the doorway. "These guys can help me."

Evan nodded, thankful. Pulling out his gun again, he followed Jennifer and her team. She worked on Anderson as they moved, holding on to one of the side railings on the gurney while cutting open his shirt with the scissors Marie handed her. In his years of service, Evan had never seen anyone survive something like this.

He wanted to join Sheppard's team, find this man, and kill him himself—for tormenting Jen, attacking Adams, and now shooting his other two men. It took all of his training to hold the rage inside as he watched the woman in front of him desperately trying to save Anderson's life.

As they reached the infirmary, Jennifer shouted at her team. "Prep surgery. Now!" Turning back to Anderson, her face paled. "We're losing him!"

Doctors surrounded the gurney as they worked to stabilize him for surgery. Evan couldn't watch any longer. He took up a post at the entrance of the infirmary, updating Sheppard. Miller walked in with the help of one of the marines while the other joined Evan on guard.

"Sir, is he—?" Miller asked. Evan knew full well the two men were close.

"They're working on him," Evan answered, not able to tell him that it didn't look good.

At least two hours flew by. Evan paced the infirmary, waiting to hear word from Jennifer on Anderson's condition. While he knew that every minute she stayed back there working on him, it meant the man was still breathing.

Sheppard's team came up with nothing during the search. After questioning Miller, he was frustrated to learn the captain reveal that the gunman had worn a mask. And with Rodney still working on setting up some sort of video surveillance near the living quarters, which they had never installed since beginning the expedition, they still didn't have an ID on the man.

Finally, Jennifer emerged from the OR. She was covered in blood. As she walked out, she slowly discarded her soiled scrubs someone must've thrown on her. He doubted she would've stopped otherwise at the rate the blood was pouring out of the captain. Under the scrubs, Jennifer was stained with almost as much blood, barely dried. Instead of briefing them, she sat down in a nearby chair, with her head hanging low.

Evan's heart sunk in his chest. It could only mean—

"He's hanging on, Major," Marie came up to them when he saw Evan's face fall. "Jennifer just needed a second to regroup. He crashed twice."

Sheppard walked over, hearing the conversation. "What are his chances?"

The head nurse shrugged. "It's hard to say. But he's bad off, Colonel. He was shot at a very close range. But he has one thing in his favor." Marie gestured to Jennifer. "She wasn't ranked as one of the top surgeons in the country for nothing. I've worked with many doctors, but she's unreal to watch. Most of us were ready give up, but she kept working. Her hands never shook. Not once."

She nodded at the men and went back to her CMO. Jennifer sat there still, head pointing down and resting on her hands. Marie saw the tears falling from her face onto the floor. Sensing the doctor, whom she held in the highest esteem, needed something more than she could provide, she sent a look to Evan. The man was already on his way. He walked over and knelt in front of Jennifer.

"Come on, Jen," he murmured. "Let's go get you changed."

"Get her out of here for the night, major," Marie murmured. "She worked a double shift today and needs her rest if she's going to be any help to us tomorrow. Dr. Stevens is on call and is capable of handling watching over Captain Anderson. I'll be here as well."

Jennifer heard them and wiped her face. "I'm fine."

Eying her CMO's hands, which had finally begun to shake, she looked down at her. "Dr. Keller, you're in no shape to stay in here. If you keep your communicator on, I'll radio you if there's any change in him."

Evan didn't wait for her to answer. He grabbed her hands and pulled her up. Jennifer nodded and allowed Evan to escort her out of the infirmary.

Sheppard sent a look at Ronon and followed them.

"Sheppard, we got to get this guy," Evan called over his shoulder.

"Couldn't agree with you more, Lorne," his CO answered. "But he vanished without a trace. There's not much more we can do tonight other than keep everyone safe. Particularly doc here."

When they reached her room, she keyed in the code. Blood was everywhere... the hallway had not be cleaned nor was the floor in her room. Miller's wound proved to be more serious than she originally had thought, but Marie assured her Dr. Stevens had come in several minutes after she'd arrived and successfully removed the bullet. The prognosis on recovery was good. The blood itself didn't bother her... but the words the man had called out through her door did.

_"His blood is on your hands."_

The blood seemed to leave her head and she began to breathe fast. Panicking, she backed up and slumped into Evan, who caught her before she hit the floor.

"Get her out of here," Sheppard said. "She can't stay tonight."

Evan agreed. "My room. I'll stay with her, but let me know if anything changes on Anderson."

He carried her to his room, with Sheppard trailing behind him. He half listened to his CO directing Woolsey to radio all Atlantian personnel out of the hallways and into either their quarters or the mess hall for the next ten minutes.

Evan shot him a curious look.

"I don't want anyone to know where we're stashing Keller," Sheppard explained. "No men on your door, either. I'll spread the word that she's still in the infirmary and Ronon's keeping post there. It should deter him from coming after her."

Evan swore.

"Easy, Lorne," Sheppard said. "I'll get McKay to lock out anyone from entering in a code to your room. You'll be the only one who can open it from the inside. That should provide enough security for tonight, at least. Keep your communicator on you. I'll swing by in the morning for you both." He eyed Evan's leg. "Are you carrying right now?"

"Just my side arm," Evan said. "I have a few more pieces stashed in the room."

Sheppard nodded, shutting the door and allowing Evan to finally set Jennifer down. Sometime during the walk, her eyes opened again. She looked like she just walked out of a battle.

"Come on, Jen," he spoke softly to her. "Let's get you cleaned up." Wishing he would have thought to grab some clothes, he rummaged in his closest for a sweatshirt and draw-string sweat pants for her to wear. Taking the items into the bathroom, he watched as she walked in a daze to change.

A few minutes later, he had changed out of his own clothes and into running pants and a t-shirt. Evan heard her open the door, calling for him. Jennifer was wearing the pants, but looked up at him helplessly.

"My hands—" she said, holding them out. "I can't stop shaking. The buttons—"

Seeing her dilemma, he stepped forward and moved to slowly unbutton her top. Averting his eyes, he pulled apart the shirt and tugged it off her limp arms. Stepping around her, he asked her softly to hold up her arms as he pulled the sweatshirt over her head. His pants were several sizes too large for her, so he gently moved up the sweatshirt and rolled the waist band a few times, just like he'd had to do for his small nephew when his pant legs dragged.

Turning, he pulled down the covers and led her to the bed. "Try to get some sleep. I'll be in the chair."

She grabbed his hand before he could leave her side. "No!" She said, forcefully. Embarrassed, she reached out for him. "Stay with me. Please?"

Unable to resist her request, he pulled the covers and sank in next to her. On his back, he wasn't surprised when she scooted over and lay her head on his shoulder. Pulling her closer to him, he rested his chin on the top of her head.

"Marie told us that you really pulled off a miracle tonight," he murmured into her hair. "She said Anderson was lucky to have you as the surgeon."

She didn't respond at first. Taking a deep breath, Jennifer told Evan about the attack, from the time she heard the scuffle to hearing the shot that brought Anderson down.

"They almost died protecting me. And Anderson— when he was shot just on the other side of the door... I think my heart stopped beating. Ev, I'm not sure if he's going to make it through the night," she confided, tears pouring down her cheeks again. Jennifer cried as she told him what the attacker had said through the door.

Evan didn't know what to say to her. She'd just witnessed probably one of the most horrific things even a soldier would've a hard time dealing with. He did the only thing he knew would comfort her... all night, he held her tight against him and prayed for a miracle.

* * *

Wrapped in the warm, strong arms of Evan was about the most perfect way to wake up. Jennifer stirred, looking up to see if Evan was awake. Seeing his open eyes, she smiled.

"Morning," she murmured.

"Morning, yourself," Evan said, shifting to allow her to stretch.

The events of last night came flooding back to her. Sitting up, she began to remember the horrifying attack, the long surgery, and then finally coming back to Evan's room. She studied his room. It was the first time she'd been inside it. It was neat; she assumed that was from his military training ingrained into him. A few picture frames were placed on the tables of his family. Two that stuck out were a few pictures of his sister's children Evan was always fond of bringing up, especially after coming back from a visit to Earth.

She turned to Evan, almost afraid to ask. "Have you heard any updates?" She knew he'd fallen asleep with his communicator still in his ear.

"Marie radioed me just before she left for her quarters," he said, brushing her hair that had escaped her pony tail out of her face. "He not only made it through the night, but there's been no sign of infection and his blood pressure is improving."

She breathed a sigh of relief. Now that she was more awake, she began to feel a little awkward sharing his bed. Especially since they really hadn't spoken about this change in relationship they seemed to be having in the past few weeks.

"I hear your brain moving," Evan said, tugging her back into his arms. "How about shutting that off for a few more minutes?"

She sighed, cuddling up to him. "I know the timing stinks, but we probably need to talk about this sooner than later. It seems like there's no right time lately. Between the notes, Adams, and now Miller and Anderson..."

Evan kissed the top of her head. He would've replied, but Sheppard came over his radio.

"Sheppard," he patted Jennifer, signaling he'd just gotten a call over the radio. "Yea, I'll tell her. Okay. See you in a few." Although he would rather spend a few more minutes with her snug against him, he moved to get up. "Sheppard's on his way. Marie went into your room earlier this morning and gave him a bag of clothes for you to change into. He's going to take you to his room while I get ready here. Then I'll take over for him in the infirmary."

Almost disappointed, she got up from the bed.

"I'm not sure what will happen tonight if we don't make progress on ID'ing this guy," Evan said, "but you won't be sleeping in your room until he's caught."

"Oh?" she asked innocently, helping him make his bed. The good news that Anderson was holding his own made her want to start the day on a positive note. Waking up in his arms was the first step... teasing him would be the next. "So whose room will I be in tonight? Ronon's?"

He glared at her, then laughed as he chased her around the bed, throwing the pillow at her head just as they heard a knock at the door.

"Saved by Sheppard," he growled.

She ran to the door, confirmed it was Sheppard, and opened it before Evan could chase her down.

Sheppard was surprised to find her with a smile on her face. Looking at Evan with his eyebrows raised, he saw his SIC shrug.

"She's feisty this morning, Colonel," Evan said. He knew Sheppard had no clue to the change in his and Jennifer's relationship and wanted to keep it that way until the two of them had a change to discuss it themselves.

"Must have got a good nights rest finally, Jen," Sheppard said, waiting for her to step out.

"Yeah, speaking of which..." she looked at the both of them. "Where do I get a big, comfy bed like that?"

Evan snorted and looked at his CO. "I think she caught us." Leaving Sheppard to field the question alone, he closed the door to his room.

"Sheppard, you're capable of walking and talking at the same time," Jennifer said as they made their way to his quarters.

"Okay, okay, General O'Neil hooked up a few of us. If you keep quiet about it, I'll get you one too." Sheppard said, knowing he wouldn't be able to shake her loose on the matter.

"Much better," she said, satisfied.


	8. Chapter 8

The day went by with no other attacks. Even more puzzling, there had been no new notes as well.

Jennifer was pleased with Anderson's status on the second day of his recovery. The man had a strong will. Adams' continued to heal, now awake, and Miller's injury would require another several days recovery.

She was under constant guard. Between Sheppard and Lorne, as well as Ronon's hulking presence in the infirmary, she was never alone. When Evan was on guard duty, she didn't mind as much, even though he tended to be more protective than Sheppard and Ronon combined.

The occasional flirting made up for it, though. When she wasn't working and they took a meal in her office, he would sneak in a statement that would make her face flush.

"You know, Jen," he would scoot closer to her as they finished lunch. "This has been about my favorite assignment since arriving on Atlantis."

Usually an interruption from Sheppard, Ronon, or Marie would stop them from going any further. Evan would just send her a look, forcing her to regain her composure as someone asked her a question.

Jennifer also took up to sleeping in the infirmary on the third night, where she could not only keep close watch on Lorne's team but also it was more convenient with the security rotation guarding her.

The men were confident they'd capture the man soon. She hoped it would be soon, and without any more attacks.

* * *

Nothing was adding up. Evan thought over and over as to who could be the one causing all of this trouble. Now that three of his men were in the infirmary, two critical, as well as the constant threat he feared for Jen, he was desperate to find the man.

Adams hadn't been able to recall much from his attack. According to the battered Lieutenant, a large-sized male was waiting in his darkened room after breakfast on the morning of his attack. He was holding something large, surprised him by hitting him with the object to the stomach, and then proceeded to swing the hard, cold object against him at the same time yelling at him for his interest in Jennifer.

So they had a few basic physical clues, but nothing else came of their talk with Adams.

A few days later, Anderson began to slowly wake up from his encounter with the man. Unfortunately, the captain gave him the same information as Adams. The man had wore a mask, only revealing his eyes, but Anderson informed Evan he was male, tall, slightly with a build and also noticed the man had brown eyes.

Since Jennifer was on shift and it was the afternoon, Evan sat with Ronon while watching her. Word had spread through Atlantis that none of the men in the infirmary had been able to identify their attacker. They hoped it would prevent anyone from coming in and finishing what they'd started.

"Frustrated?" Ronon turned to Evan, sitting down for the first time in hours. Evan had begun pacing in the area they'd set as their domain from the medical staff since they could see the entire infirmary from it.

"I'm missing something," Evan said. "Sheppard and I have gone through all of the military files of males in the city. The stack of possible suspects is the same amount as those who we feel aren't likely candidates, like the three of us, Rodney, Radek, and a few other guys."

"So you're automatically ruling out the scientists and doctors?" Ronon asked.

"It seemed more likely to us that the man is military. Miller and Anderson both said he handled a hand gun like a pro."

Evan finally sat down, looking to check on Jennifer again. Her head was just at the height where he could see her in her office. At least she was sleeping better. With Anderson and Adams looking like they'd be making a full recovery, and Miller healing nicely, everyone was breathing a sigh of relief.

Ronon's words nagged at him, though. Grabbing the stack of personnel files again, he began searching through them and sorted out the men. Frustrated, he decided it would be easier to just ask Jennifer about the medical people and Rodney about the scientists.

He told Ronon he'd be back in a few minutes and located Rodney on the radio.

"McKay, Ronon and I are both wondering if focusing all on military is wise. Can you think of a male scientist who has been trained, informally or in the military, with a gun?" Evan asked, hoping the man would think of someone. "And that meets the description given by my men?"

"Major, other than myself, there are no guys who are remotely capable of handling a gun," Rodney said, distractedly. "I understand your frustration, but I'm busy here. We're trying to set up more cameras in Atlantis, and although it sounds easy, making Earth and Atlantian technology compatible is not the easiest task."

Discouraged, Evan made his way back to the infirmary and walked straight into Jen's office.

"Hey," he said, sitting down next to her. "What are you working on?"

She had scattered some paperwork in front of her, frowning at it. "Oh... hey," She smiled at him. "I was just looking over some order requests. I'm missing an empty oxygen tank, believe it or not. I need to get them shipped out on the next visit we have from Earth to exchange it for a full one."

"Weird," Evan said. "Jen, I'm sorry to bug you, but I need some help. Ronon was questioning why we aren't searching outside of the military folks in the city for whoever is behind the attacks." Evan shut the door, noticing a few people glancing their way. "Is there anyone on your team who fits the description?"

Frowning, Jennifer looked through her window. "As far as physical descriptions go, Dr. Stevens and Dr. Meadows are both tall, male... not sure on the eyes, though."

"Pull their files," Evan urged her.

He waited while she unlocked her filing cabinet under the desk and located the two files.

"Let's see... Meadows is newer than Stevens... says here in his file that he has had no self-defense training... no weapons training..." Jennifer rattled off, scanning the file.

Evan got up, looking out her office window. In a corner, his eyes caught a brief glimpse of Dr. Stevens looking directly at him. Stevens turned away, almost making it look like he hadn't been watching them. _If it ended up being him, _Evan thought, _I'll kill him myself. _The man had stitched him up just weeks ago.

"Jen, look at Stevens' file," Evan said quietly. He watched the man sit at a laptop, entering in information. Radioing Ronon, he instructed the him to come to the office.

"Yeah?" Ronon asked gruffly, not turning his back so that he could still monitor the infirmary.

Evan walked over to him. In a low voice, he warned him to keep an eye on Dr. Stevens but not to make it obvious. Ronon nodded and resumed his post.

"Ev, it says here he's very proficient with weapons. It was one of the reasons they took him on the expedition." Jennifer read through his file quickly. "He's cleared to carry it at all times, too. Carter okay'd it when he came on board. He said he felt the infirmary needed it since it's left unguarded at times...I've read his file, but nothing like this ever stood out to me."

His gut was telling him that they had their man.

"Sheppard, come in," Evan said over the radio. When he heard his CO, he requested him to come to the infirmary immediately.

"Okay, Jen," Evan said, sitting down next to her. "This may or may not be our guy. If I send Ronon in here with you, would you be comfortable if I played out a hunch? He wouldn't come close to you, but just in case, Ronon will be right next to you."

Jennifer nodded.

"Ronon, switch with me," Evan said over the radio. When he came through the door, Evan looked at him. "Don't leave her. For any reason. Let's see if we have our man."

Evan made his way out of her office and met Sheppard at the door.

"What's up?" Sheppard asked. "You got something?"

"Yeah," Evan said, lowering his voice. "Play along with whatever I say." He went over to talk to Marie, pretending to not be feeling well. Sheppard stood next to him while he lied to the nurse, saying he'd been having headaches and feeling nauseous all morning.

"I'll go get a doctor for you, Major Lorne," Marie said. When she didn't see Jennifer, she turned to Dr. Stevens and informed him that he had a patient.

"What's going on, Lorne?" Sheppard hissed at him.

Evan laid down on the gurney. Since Dr. Stevens was closing down his laptop with his back turned to him, he quickly informed Sheppard of his plan.

"Major Lorne," Dr. Stevens said, walking over to him. "Colonel Sheppard," he nodded at John. "Well, at least this time you're not bleeding from a beating. Tell me what's going on."

He launched into a brief description of the headaches he had today. Dr. Stevens wrote everything down, then came up to examine him.

"Well, you don't have a concussion, so Ronon's off the hook if you guys have been keeping up with the training," he said. "I'll run some tests, but my bet is that you're body is not happy with you lately. How have you been sleeping and eating? What's your stress level like?"

Sleep had been good lately. Especially the two nights after the attack, but he wouldn't tell that to the doctor. Since Jen had spent them in his bed, snug up against him, he felt confident enough that she was safe that he'd been getting a full six hours in.

"We've all been stressed trying to find this idiot on the loose," Evan said, hoping to get him agitated. "Ronon's had it the worst. He's been worried sick about the doc."

"Ronon?" Dr. Stevens said, obviously trying to be nonchalant. "I've seen you three around her a lot, especially lately, but why has he had it the worst?"

"Oops," Evan said, shaking his head. "I probably shouldn't have let that slip. Jen's been trying to keep it a secret."

He had the full attention of Dr. Stevens. Evan saw the man gripping his paperwork tighter. White knuckled, the man looked at him, intensely.

"Guess you'll figure it out anyways," Evan shrugged. "In the midst of all of this, I guess the big guy finally admitted to her that he's in love with her. Jen had been feeling the same way about him, so I guess it's one good thing that came from all of this."

Sheppard and Evan watched the man physically battle to keep in his rage. "Well," he bit out. "No, I haven't heard all of this." He turned in the direction of Jen's office, where everyone could see her and Ronon sitting next to one another, talking. "I'll order up those tests. Excuse me."

They watched him walk away.

"It's him," Evan said. "And he may be stupid enough to try something. Radio Ronon, fill him in. I'll radio for backup."

Sheppard nodded. "Nice work, major."

"We're not out of the woods yet," Evan said.

* * *

"Seriously?" Jennifer gasped after Ronon got off the radio. "I just can't believe it. All this time, we've been thinking it was some deranged soldier... someone I haven't even met yet."

But then, things began to add up. Dr. Stevens had been with the team longer than she had. Jennifer thought back, thinking the man had been extra welcoming to her when she'd come and was promoted as CMO, even though he probably could've been in the running for job himself.

He never made her feel nervous by any means, but there were certain times he had been right there by her side if she needed extra help and protection holding someone down if they came back wounded, panicked, and potentially could've hurt one of them.

"Don't worry," Ronon said, making sure he was between her and the door. "If he's stupid, he'll try something. And between the three of us, he's not going anywhere."

Minutes ticked by. Finally, Jennifer saw the doctor coming towards her office. Without moving her lips, she warned Ronon. "Here he comes..."

"Dr. Keller," the man said, looking unnaturally calm. "I wonder if I could speak to you for a moment in private?"

"Negative, Doc," Ronon growled. "I don't leave her side."

Stevens' face never broke composure. "Well, then, may I come in and speak to you both then?"

Ronon eyed the man. "Sure. Take a seat next to me. Jen, you move to the end of the table." He turned to the doctor. "Sorry, I'm not taking chances on anyone. Lorne thinks this guy is making a move soon. And even though he ruled out medical staff, I haven't," he growled.

"Understandable, Ronon," Stevens said. He sat down next to him. As soon as he settled into the chair, neither Ronon nor Jen noticed he reached into his pocket. "I'd like to talk to Jennifer here about something the Major just informed me of." He pulled a syringe out of his pocket then quickly jabbed the contents into Ronon's leg. Ronon jolted up, stood, and then quickly slumped to the ground.

Jennifer was shocked to see Ronon pass out in front of her suddenly. Jumping up, she ran to him, checking his pulse. "What did you do?" She looked up at Stevens.

"Only gave him a tranq' enough to get an elephant down. Don't worry. It wasn't a lethal dose. We were low in the stock room," he said calmly. "He should be dead after I heard he's put his hands on you."

She looked up, startled. "Why? Why are you doing this? Why didn't you just approach me?"

"Please, and get sent back if you didn't return the feelings and were uncomfortable with me afterward? Not a chance. Now look," he tugged her back into a chair. Looking out the window, he didn't see anyone approaching. "We still have to get past your bodyguards out there. Make one false move and I'll shoot the closest person to us."

She began to stall in order for Sheppard and Evan to notice something going on in her office. "So it was you who attacked Lt. Adams?" When he nodded, she felt like charging him and beating him for the hurt he caused the young man. "Why him?"

"Because the kid had a crush on you. I overheard you at the party just before I left. You asked him to walk you back to your room." His eyes gleamed at her, showing her how unstable he was. It was amazing how the man had fooled her all of this time. Fooled them all, in fact. "I wanted to make sure he wouldn't be a future problem for me."

"And the letters... you had access to my medical bag. Oh my gosh," she said, just now realizing everything. "You had an override code to my room until McKay revoked all override access codes to my room. That's how you left the note on my bed."

He smirked. "That was easy. The hard part was smuggling that empty oxygen tank out of here and back after using it on Adams."

Her gut twisted, making her want to be sick right there. "Were you scared he'd ID you if he pulled through? You could've killed him later in the infirmary?" That thought alone made her even more ill.

Stevens narrowed his eyes. "I thought about it... but once he got through the first night, I heard that he really wasn't interested in you anymore. Seems Adams has a crush on Lt. Cadman now. That little fact saved his life. Especially when I saw you didn't return his feelings." Then his eyes hardened. "But I didn't see Ronon coming. At first I worried about the close relationships you have with those three protectors of yours... especially Lorne... but time proved they only cared for you as a sister. With the exception of Ronon, I guess."

She tried to think of a plan to stop him without anyone else getting hurt, but he'd begun to edge her towards the door. "Where are you taking me?"

"We're getting off this city. I've already researched and picked a world for us to live on."

"What?" Jennifer shrieked. Hoping Evan and Sheppard would be able to stop him before he hurt someone, she blanched. "No. I'm not going."

Stevens pulled out his gun, complete with a silencer. "Then I shoot lover boy over there."

"No!" She yelled. "Okay, I'll go."

When they emerged from the office, she noticed Sheppard and Evan looking for a sign of Ronon. She met Evan's eyes, feeding her fear into his mind. "Gun," she mouthed. Stevens stayed behind her. "Marie," she called out shakily. "Dr. Stevens and I are going for a walk."

"Sounds fine, doc," Sheppard responded after Marie nodded. "But you're not leaving without an escort."

"I'll see to her safety, Colonel," Stevens smoothed over. "I promise."

She saw Evan move around them. With Stevens only focusing on Sheppard, he didn't notice Evan moving and working his way behind them.

"Sorry, Doctor, but I'm going to have to insist," Sheppard leveled a look at the man. He saw Stevens' flash an angry look. Darting a look at Evan, he nodded, signaling him to make a move.

Evan rushed up behind them, shoving Stevens away from Jennifer and covering her body with his own. Enraged, the man looked up to see Jennifer pulled out of his reach, swung up his gun, and almost had Evan in his range when Sheppard fired off a single shot to his shoulder, sending the gun clattering down on the floor.

Nurses screamed and began ducking behind whatever would shield them from the chaos erupting in front of them.

Stevens screamed when the bullet hit him, then moved toward the gun again. He picked it up, aiming at Evan and Jennifer. Evan didn't hesitate and shot him square in the chest. He fell down hard, sending the gun to Sheppard's feet.

Sheppard walked over, confirming he was dead. The infirmary was silent as everyone stared at the fallen doctor, in clear disbelief that the man who'd caused all of this hurt was a man whom they thought was in the city to heal the sick and wounded.

Jennifer clung to Evan, who turned her away from the sight in front of them. There were no more tears left inside her, but the grief was still there. She saw the back up Marines arrive in the infirmary and called over to Marie to grab a couple of men to get Ronon out of her office and onto a gurney.

"What happened to him?" Evan said, still unwilling to let her go.

"Stevens tranq'd him," she replied. "He'll be out for a few hours."

Sheppard made his way to them, setting his gun back into the holster. He checked her over to make sure for himself that Jennifer was alright.

"Jen, you okay?" he asked.

She glanced over at the man lying on the floor. "No, but I will be."


	9. Chapter 9

_This is the final chapter. I'm putting this up because I got it ready early and a few readers thought the last chapter was the final one. I would never end a story without the big kiss ;)_

_Thanks to Bailey1ak again for all of her help editing and encouragement! _

* * *

"Sounds like everything is going to be back to normal again," Jennifer said later that evening. They'd all surrounded Evan's team after Stevens had been carried away, probably mostly out of comfort that everything was over. "Anderson's going to pull through, Adams is almost out of here, and Miller's on his way out today. Ronon's up and cranky."

Evan turned to her, looking serious. "Well, there's one thing I hope will change around here."

"What's that?" Jennifer asked.

He pointedly looked at her lips and then back to her eyes. "I think there's a certain doctor who needs to be officially taken off the single market."

She grinned, teasing him. "Hmmm... and who's that?"

Impatient and unwilling to wait one more minute to finally kiss her, Evan began to pull her in the direction to a balcony just outside the infirmary hallway.

"Storage closet is closer, you know," she laughed, hoping no one was witnessing this.

"I'm not about to have our first kiss in a closet," he growled. "I have a reputation to uphold and that's not romantic. Especially since everyone thinks Sheppard's the better kisser."

"Ev, you know I just made that up," she said, smiling at him. He just looked at her, eyes narrowing. Then he seemed to remember something.

"Wait, you know what would be quicker?" Evan sent her a look, looking like he was up to something. "I think I owe you a payback. I wonder what these fine nurses, doctors, and everyone else would think if I just up and carried you out of here?"

She glared at him. Seeing he was serious, she dropped the charts in her hands and grabbed on to a metal cart... as if it would prevent him from lifting her off the ground. She squealed as he bent, threw her one arm over his back and lifted her effortlessly off the ground over his shoulder.

"Put me down, Ev!" she screeched, slapping his back half-halfheartedly, which drew even more attention towards them.

"Major, what are you doing?" Sheppard called out, standing next to Ronon. Both men looked on, confused, as a few nurses started clapping. Evan ignored his CO and kept walking towards the door.

Sheppard turned to Ronon. "What in the heck just happened?"

Ronon shrugged, still irritated about getting stabbed with a needle earlier, and began to follow them. Sheppard ran to catch up to him.

* * *

Lorne opened the doors and pulled her through, closing them behind them.

He steadied her, pulling her close against him. Feeling like he was going to explode if had to keep his hands off her one more minute, Evan cupped her face and then ran his hands through her hair.

"So that stuff about Sheppard and I was just made up, huh?" Evan grinned, looking down at her.

"Yup. It was my feeble attempt at flirting. And for the record, my bet is on you. Hands down," she grinned, licking her lips. Rising on her tiptoes, she went to brush her lips against him. Evan wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her flush against him. But just as her lips almost touched his, the doors swished open.

Evan swore and out of habit yanked the gun out of its holster. Surprised, he saw Sheppard and Ronon standing there, Ronon with his own gun drawn.

"What?" he demanded, not removing his hands from Jennifer's waist.

Ronon didn't lower his gun. Sheppard just looked at Evan like he wasn't believing what he was seeing.

"Major, what's going on here? Why are you out here with Jennifer? And why are your hands inches from her..." Sheppard looked like he was at war with the words "behind?"

Glaring at both men, Evan just looked at them. "That wouldn't be any of your business, Sheppard."

Ronon growled.

"You mean you..." Sheppard sputtered, "and the Doc? Seriously? When did this happen?"

Jennifer rolled her eyes, still clinging to Evan. "Ronon, put the gun down."

The man didn't budge. And Sheppard was still looking from Evan to Jennifer.

"Alright, look," Jennifer said, fed up with them both. She pushed away from Evan, hands on her hips, glaring at both men in front of her. "You," she pointed at Ronon. "The gun goes down or I tell every single new recruit who comes through here for physicals before beginning their training with you about the time we spent at the clinic back on M7G-677 late that one night."

"What?" Evan barked.

"Relax," she said calmly behind her shoulder. "The big guy over here completely melted over a two-year-old girl. Sang her to sleep several times for the sick mother I was tending to. Think that would go over well if it ever got out? How would your reputation be then, Specialist Dex?"

Grating his teeth, Ronon just starred at her. Not backing down, she didn't blink. Finally, he dropped the weapon and sulked over to the corner.

"There, now that's better. And John," she called over to him. "You seem to be taking this a little less violently, but I'm sure your reputation as being slow to anger will prove to be correct within the next few minutes. So let's diffuse it now. Take yourself, and your big friend over there, and go back inside."

He didn't make a move. Sheppard just looked at Evan, eyes narrowing. "How long has this been going on?"

Evan began to defend himself when Jennifer interrupted.

"Nope, wrong move, John. Now, wouldn't it be just lovely if a doctor... meaning myself... began dropping hints to Nurse Tricia? It seems that she thoroughly loved going on that date with you. And I figure if I start dropping hints that you've been asking about her... which is a lie, of course... she won't leave you alone. And let me tell you. That woman can be persistent."

Sheppard removed his eyes from Evan and back to Jennifer. Steeling a look at her, he saw she was dead serious.

Backing away, he turned once before him and Ronon left. "Lorne, I swear, if you hurt her-"

"Not going to happen, Sheppard," Evan waved him off. He sighed when they left.

"Okay," Jennifer said, turning. "Now where were we?"

"Oh," Evan said, walking towards her purposefully. "Just about right here." Taking her hands, he put them around his neck and guided her body back to his. "You realize this is going to spread like wildfire. Sheppard won't keep his mouth shut."

"Don't care," Jennifer said, enjoying the feeling of her hands in his hair. "Are you going to kiss me or what?"

"Impatient, aren't we?" he chuckled, deciding to slow things down a bit. "First, I want to kiss you here," he moved his lips to her neck, causing her to shiver. "And then I thought I could also kiss you there," Evan spoke as he trailed his lips across her jawline, stopping to kiss the sensitive area just inches from her mouth. "And then, finally..." he slowly moved her lips to hers. Just as they were a fraction of a centimeter from each other, the doors opened for a second time.

Both of them groaned, looking over to see what the interruption was this time.

"Oh, man," Anderson yelled, clapping his hands. "Sorry, we know we're interrupting, but Sheppard just told us."

Miller wheeled in Anderson while Adams trailed behind, limping slightly.

"We knew it wouldn't be long until you both finally came to your senses," Miller laughed.

"Man, no wonder you jumped on my case that first day we met," Adams joked.

Evan just looked up, wondering how much longer his patience was going to hold.

"Alright, alright," Anderson said, signaling Miller to back into the hallway. "We get it. Don't need us around right now, huh?"

"Some privacy would be wonderful," Jennifer stated, dryly. As the doors closed for the third time in minutes, she yanked out her radio. "Keller to McKay. Private channel."

A moment later, Rodney's voice came on. "Jen, glad to hear your voice. Heard there was quite a commotion in your neck of the woods earlier. What's up?"

She sighed. "Can you get a location on myself and Major Lorne right now?"

"Of course," they heard clicking on his lap top. "You're on the southwest balcony, adjacent to the infirmary."

"Seriously, that's just scary. I mean, Will Smith in _Enemy of the State_ scary," Evan muttered.

"McKay, I need you to lock the doors to the balcony. Temporarily. Say, for twenty minutes. Allow access from the balcony but not from the hall."

Evan laughed. "You really are a genius, huh?"

Fingers flew against the keyboard. Ten seconds later, he came back on. "Is there a problem, Jen?"

"No," she hissed. "But there will be if anyone... and I mean anyone, comes through those doors again in the next twenty minutes."

Static came through the radio. "Do it, McKay," Sheppard's voice came on, somewhat amused. "Doc's getting a little cranky over here."

"Sheppard, I asked for a private channel. How'd you get on here?" Jennifer asked, annoyed.

She could tell he was grinning. "All private channels still get routed through my ear piece. The perks and yet also annoyance of being the lead military in the city."

"Alright, Jen, wish granted," Rodney called over the radio. "And Sheppard, I want details. Lots of details. We have some curious people up in the control room wondering what's going on over there."

Muttering about citrus fruit and hypochondriacs, Jennifer switched off her radio and through it onto the ground.

"Maybe this is all a sign," she said, turning to Evan. "I mean, counting the rain incident the other day, that's the third time we've been interrupted."

"Actually," Evan murmured, grabbing hold of her before she could step away from him, "I think you're right. This all could be a sign."

"I think your sign and my sign aren't matching up," she laughed. "And I think I like your sign better. So tell me, major, what does all of this mean?"

Knowing it was finally the right moment, Evan dipped his head close to hers. "It means that good things happen to those who wait." Closing the distance between their lips, he tenderly kissed her. She sighed, meeting his lips, and wrapped her arms tight around his neck.

"Hmmm..." she murmured against his lips. "You're right... definitely worth the wait."


End file.
